US20230371648A1 - Encased strobel with cushioning member and method of manufacturing an article of footwear - Google Patents
Encased strobel with cushioning member and method of manufacturing an article of footwear Download PDFInfo
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- US20230371648A1 US20230371648A1 US18/366,141 US202318366141A US2023371648A1 US 20230371648 A1 US20230371648 A1 US 20230371648A1 US 202318366141 A US202318366141 A US 202318366141A US 2023371648 A1 US2023371648 A1 US 2023371648A1
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- cushioning member
- strobel
- casing
- footwear
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Images
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A43—FOOTWEAR
- A43B—CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
- A43B13/00—Soles; Sole-and-heel integral units
- A43B13/14—Soles; Sole-and-heel integral units characterised by the constructive form
- A43B13/18—Resilient soles
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A43—FOOTWEAR
- A43B—CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
- A43B13/00—Soles; Sole-and-heel integral units
- A43B13/14—Soles; Sole-and-heel integral units characterised by the constructive form
- A43B13/18—Resilient soles
- A43B13/20—Pneumatic soles filled with a compressible fluid, e.g. air, gas
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A43—FOOTWEAR
- A43B—CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
- A43B13/00—Soles; Sole-and-heel integral units
- A43B13/02—Soles; Sole-and-heel integral units characterised by the material
- A43B13/12—Soles with several layers of different materials
- A43B13/125—Soles with several layers of different materials characterised by the midsole or middle layer
- A43B13/127—Soles with several layers of different materials characterised by the midsole or middle layer the midsole being multilayer
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A43—FOOTWEAR
- A43B—CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
- A43B13/00—Soles; Sole-and-heel integral units
- A43B13/38—Built-in insoles joined to uppers during the manufacturing process, e.g. structural insoles; Insoles glued to shoes during the manufacturing process
- A43B13/40—Built-in insoles joined to uppers during the manufacturing process, e.g. structural insoles; Insoles glued to shoes during the manufacturing process with cushions
Definitions
- the present disclosure generally relates to a strobel for an article of footwear that includes a casing and a cushioning member in the casing, an article of footwear including the strobel, and a method of manufacturing the article of footwear including the strobel.
- Footwear sole structures are often configured with a midsole configured to provide cushioning and energy return.
- Footwear uppers are often lasted with a strobel that closes a lower portion of the upper and overlies the midsole.
- the strobel is generally a relatively inelastic component.
- Traditional strobels thus do not serve as cushioning components, and in fact may change the desired cushioning dynamic and reduce the cushioning effect of the underlying midsole as felt by the wearer.
- Some traditional strobels may be somewhat stiff and may be generally harder than the underlying midsole.
- An insole sometimes referred to as a sockliner, is often disposed over the strobel in the foot-receiving void of the upper in order to provide cushioning above the relatively hard strobel.
- the insole may be removable or fixed to the upper or sole structure. This adds to the weight and expense of the footwear.
- FIG. 1 is a perspective illustration of an article of footwear.
- FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional illustration of a strobel included in the article of footwear, the strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel for the article of footwear.
- FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional illustration of the article of footwear of FIG. 1 taken at lines 4 - 4 in FIG. 1 .
- FIG. 5 is a perspective illustration of a bottom sheet of the casing of the strobel of FIG. 2 with adhesive disposed thereon.
- FIG. 6 is a perspective illustration of the bottom sheet of FIG. 1 with the cushioning component of FIG. 2 thereon.
- FIG. 7 is a perspective illustration of a top sheet of the casing of the strobel of FIG. 2 overlying the cushioning component and bottom sheet of FIG. 6 .
- FIG. 8 is a perspective illustration of the top sheet and the bottom sheet secured at a peripheral flange via stitching, with the cushioning member in a cavity formed between the sheets.
- FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the strobel of FIG. 8 aligned with a footwear upper.
- FIG. 10 is perspective view of the upper of FIG. 9 joined to the strobel of FIG. 9 at the peripheral flange.
- FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the upper and strobel of FIG. 10 aligned with a footwear last for placement thereon.
- FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a midsole having an upper surface that defines a recess.
- FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the midsole of FIG. 12 aligned with the lasted strobel and upper for attachment thereto.
- FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 14 .
- FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 16 .
- FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 18 .
- FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 20 .
- FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 22 .
- FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing, a first cushioning member, and a second cushioning member.
- FIG. 25 is a plan view of the strobel of FIG. 24 .
- FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 25 taken at lines 26 - 26 of the strobel in FIG. 25 .
- FIG. 27 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 27 .
- FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 29 .
- FIG. 31 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 32 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 31 .
- FIG. 33 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 34 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 33 .
- FIG. 35 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel taken at lines 35 - 35 in FIG. 36 , including a casing, a first cushioning member, and a second cushioning member.
- FIG. 36 is a plan view of the strobel of FIG. 35 .
- FIG. 37 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIGS. 35 - 36 .
- FIG. 38 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 39 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 38 .
- FIG. 40 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 41 is a perspective view of the cushioning member of the strobel of FIG. 40 .
- FIG. 42 is a perspective view of a midsole.
- FIG. 43 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 40 and the midsole of FIG. 42 .
- FIG. 44 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 45 is a perspective view of another example of a midsole.
- FIG. 46 is a perspective view of a bottom sheet of a casing of the strobel of FIG. 44 .
- FIG. 47 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 44 and the midsole of FIG. 45 .
- FIG. 48 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member.
- FIG. 49 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel of FIG. 48 .
- FIG. 50 is a flow diagram of a method of manufacturing an article of footwear.
- the present disclosure generally relates to strobels, articles of footwear, and methods of manufacturing articles of footwear that address the limitations of traditional strobel and footwear construction by effectively configuring the strobel to function as a cushioning component in addition to closing the bottom portion of the upper.
- the various strobels, articles of footwear, and methods of manufacturing described herein alleviate the need for any insole or other structure configured to overlie the strobel in the foot-receiving void.
- a strobel for an article of footwear may include a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity.
- the strobel may also include at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity.
- An exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity may be a foot contact surface of the strobel and the peripheral flange may be configured for connection to a lower perimeter of a footwear upper of an article of footwear.
- an article of footwear may include an upper and a strobel.
- the strobel may include a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity.
- the strobel may further include at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity.
- a lower perimeter of the upper may be secured to the peripheral flange of the strobel, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear.
- An exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity may be a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void.
- the article of footwear may thus be characterized by the absence of an insole.
- a method of manufacturing an article of footwear may include securing a peripheral flange of a casing of a strobel to a lower perimeter of an upper, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear.
- the strobel may have at least one cushioning member
- the casing may include at least one of a polymeric material or a textile material and may define a cavity with the at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity.
- An exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity may be a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear thus characterized by the absence of an insole.
- FIG. 1 shows an article of footwear 10 that includes one example of a strobel 12 that provides the advantages described herein, such as by providing better cushioning, including increasing the cushioning effect of the underlying sole structure 13 , including a midsole 14 , as felt by the wearer without an insole while still affording efficient manufacturability.
- the article of footwear 10 has an upper 16 with a lower perimeter 16 A to which the strobel 12 is secured so that an exterior surface 18 of the strobel 12 is a foot contact surface within a foot-receiving void 17 of the upper 16 , as best shown in FIG. 4 in which a foot 20 is shown resting directly on the foot contact surface 18 , without an insole. Accordingly, the exterior surface 18 is also referred to herein as the foot contact surface. A sock or other foot covering may or may not be worn on the foot. Accordingly, the cushioning effect of the strobel 12 and the midsole 14 is provided to the foot 20 without an intervening traditional strobel or insole.
- the article of footwear 10 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- An outsole 22 is shown underlying the midsole 14 . In some examples, a unisole which serves as a combination midsole and outsole may be used in place of the midsole 14 and outsole 22 .
- the upper 16 and strobel 12 together form the foot-receiving void 17 configured to receive a foot 20 .
- the upper 16 may be a variety of materials, such as leather, textiles, polymers, cotton, foam, composites, etc., and is shown in FIG. 1 with a lace 15 for tightening the upper 16 around a foot 20 .
- the upper 16 may instead be lace-less.
- the footwear 10 illustrated herein is depicted as an athletic shoe configured for sports or for wear as a leisure shoe, but the footwear 10 is not limited to athletic or leisure shoes.
- the footwear 10 including its components described herein may be an athletic shoe, a leisure shoe, a dress shoe, a work shoe, a sandal, a slipper, a boot, or any other category of footwear.
- the footwear 10 may be divided into a forefoot region 19 , a midfoot region 21 , and a heel region 23 , which are also the forefoot region, the midfoot region, and the heel region, respectively, of the strobel 12 , the sole structure 13 , and the upper 16 .
- the forefoot region 19 generally includes portions of the article of footwear 10 corresponding with the toes and the joints connecting the metatarsals with the phalanges of the foot 20 .
- the midfoot region 21 generally includes portions of the article of footwear 10 corresponding with the arch area and instep of the foot 20
- the heel region 23 corresponds with rear portions of the foot 20 , including the calcaneus bone.
- the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 are not intended to demarcate precise areas of the footwear 10 but are instead intended to represent general areas of the footwear 10 to aid in the following discussion.
- the footwear 10 has a medial side 25 and a lateral side 27 .
- the medial side 25 and the lateral side 27 extend through each of the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , each falling on an opposite side of a longitudinal midline (LM) of the article of footwear 10 , as is understood by those skilled in the art.
- the longitudinal midline (LM) extends along a longitudinal axis of the article of footwear 10 .
- the medial side 25 is thus considered opposite to the lateral side 27 .
- the medial side 25 and the lateral side 27 may be used in reference to a component of the footwear 10 or to the footwear 10 as a whole.
- the midsole 14 may be a foamed polymeric material and may be at least partially a polyurethane (PU) foam, and/or a polyurethane ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) foam, and may include heat-expanded and molded EVA foam pellets.
- the midsole 14 may comprise PEBAX® thermoplastic elastomer foam and may be sold under the tradename ZOOMX by NIKE, Inc.
- the midsole 14 may be any of these foamed polymeric materials, and may have a different compressive stiffness than the cushioning member 36 of the strobel 12 described herein.
- the outsole 22 may be a more durable material than the midsole 14 .
- the outsole 22 may include a rubber material that may be a natural rubber, or a synthetic rubber, or a combination of both.
- types of rubbers that may be included in the outsole 22 include butadiene rubber, styrene-butadiene (SBR) rubber, butyl rubber, isoprene rubber, urethane rubber, nitrile rubber, neoprene rubber, ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber, ethylene-propylene rubber, urethane rubber, polynorbornene rubber, methyl methacrylate butadiene styrene (MBS) rubber, styrene ethylene butylene (SEBS) rubber, silicone rubber, and/or mixtures thereof.
- SBR styrene-butadiene
- EPDM ethylene propylene diene monomer
- MBS methyl methacrylate butadiene
- the rubber included in the outsole 22 may be a virgin material, a regrind material, and/or mixtures thereof.
- the outsole 22 establishes the ground-engaging surface 22 A of the article of footwear 10 and may be one-piece or may be several discrete outsole components.
- the outsole 22 may be formed from a wear-resistant material that may be textured to impart traction.
- the strobel 12 includes a casing 24 having a peripheral flange 24 A and defining a cavity 26 .
- the cavity 26 is an enclosed cavity.
- the peripheral flange 24 A is an integral part of the casing 24 as described herein. More specifically, the casing 24 includes a top sheet 28 and a bottom sheet 30 .
- the peripheral flange 24 A includes a periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 as well as a periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 joined to the periphery of the top sheet 28 to define the peripheral flange 24 A and enclose the cavity 26 .
- the peripheral flange 24 A extends around and defines the entire perimeter (e.g., outwardly surrounding the cavity 26 ) generally in an X-Y plane of the strobel 12 , where the Z plane is the height of the strobel 12 when viewed as in FIG. 2 (e.g., from the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 to the exterior surface 56 of the bottom sheet 30 of the casing 24 ).
- the exterior surface 56 is also referred to as the bottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24 .
- the cushioning member 36 may be “full length” extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , or may extend only in one of the regions, 19 , 21 , or 23 , or may extend in any two adjacent ones of the regions 19 , 21 , and 23 .
- the cushioning member 36 is full length, and the peripheral flange 24 A extends around the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 of the strobel 12 .
- the cavity 26 is defined between an inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 and an inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 .
- the exterior surface 18 of the casing 24 facing away from the cavity 26 is the foot contact surface of the strobel 12 within the foot-receiving void 17 as the article of footwear 10 characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the strobel 12 also includes a cushioning member 36 disposed in the cavity 26 entirely inward of the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the cushioning member 36 may be any material configured to resiliently deform under a dynamic compressive load, reducing in thickness (e.g., in the vertical direction in FIGS. 2 - 4 ) under the load and resiliently returning to a steady state thickness (e.g., a thickness related to the steady state load supported on the footwear 10 , such as when supporting the weight of a stationary wearer).
- a steady state thickness e.g., a thickness related to the steady state load supported on the footwear 10 , such as when supporting the weight of a stationary wearer.
- the cushioning member 36 comprises foam, such as but not limited to a polyurethane (PU) foam, a polyurethane ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) foam, heat-expanded and molded EVA foam pellets, or PEBAX® thermoplastic elastomer foam sold under the tradename ZOOMX by NIKE, Inc.
- foam such as but not limited to a polyurethane (PU) foam, a polyurethane ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) foam, heat-expanded and molded EVA foam pellets, or PEBAX® thermoplastic elastomer foam sold under the tradename ZOOMX by NIKE, Inc.
- Each of the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30 includes a polymeric material or a textile material or a combination thereof that is generally stretchable and flexible to enable the sheets 28 , 30 to closely conform to the outer surface of the cushioning member 36 .
- FIG. 2 shows a slight space between the sheets 28 , 30 and the cushioning member 36 at the sides of the cushioning member 36 .
- a vacuum may be applied to completely conform the flexible, relatively elastic, and resiliently stretchable sheets 28 , 30 to the exterior surface of the cushioning member 36 , eliminating any gaps between the cushioning member 36 and the inner surfaces of the sheets 28 , 30 in the cavity 26 .
- the top sheet 28 may include a textile material and the bottom sheet 30 may include a thermoplastic polyurethane material, or the top sheet 28 may include a thermoplastic polyurethane material and the bottom sheet 30 may include a textile material, or both the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30 may include a textile material, or both the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30 may include a thermoplastic polyurethane material.
- the top sheet 28 may be secured to the bottom sheet 30 at the peripheral flange 24 A by thermal bonds connecting the inner surface of the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 to the inner surface of the periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 to define the peripheral flange 24 A, by welding (e.g., radio-frequency welding) to connect the inner surface of the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 to the inner surface of the periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 to define the peripheral flange 24 A, by adhering (e.g., with adhesive applied to one or both of the top sheet and the bottom sheet 30 between) to connect the inner surface of the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 to the inner surface of the periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 to define the peripheral flange 24 A, by compression molding with pressure causing the inner surface of the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 to join to the inner surface of the periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 to define the peripheral flange 24 A, and/or by
- an alternative strobel 12 A is alike in all aspects to strobel 12 except that the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 is secured to the periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 at the interface 35 of the inner surfaces 32 , 34 of the sheets 28 , 30 with adhesive, thermal bonding, and/or due to compression molding without any stitching used to secure the sheets 28 , 30 to one another at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 defines a recess 44 , as best shown in FIG. 12 .
- the midsole 14 may be a molded foam in which the mold cavity imparts the recess 44 at the upper surface 42 .
- the midsole 14 could be cut or sculpted to provide the recess 44 .
- the strobel 12 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioning member 36 is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the overall stack height of the midsole 14 and the strobel 12 is less than if no recess 44 were provided, any height difference between the top sheet 28 at the peripheral flange 24 A (e.g., at the periphery 28 A) and the top sheet 28 over the cushioning member 36 is less noticeable to the wearer, and the midsole 14 is better able to maintain lateral (e.g., transverse) stability of the strobel 12 relative to the midsole 14 by at least partially surrounding the side wall 37 of the cushioning member 36 outward of the casing 24 .
- FIGS. 5 - 13 illustrate some of the steps of a method 1600 of manufacturing the article of footwear 10 .
- the method 1600 is also discussed with respect to the flow diagram of FIG. 50 .
- FIG. 5 shows the bottom sheet 30 with adhesive 50 disposed on the inner surface 34 (e.g., the surface that will be the inner surface 34 of the casing 24 of FIG. 2 , in the assembled strobel 12 ).
- the adhesive 50 is shown disposed in generally parallel rows extending lengthwise from the medial side 25 to the lateral side 27 of the bottom sheet 30 . At least a portion 19 A of the forefoot region 19 of the bottom sheet 30 may be kept free from adhesive 50 .
- the adhesive 50 may instead be disposed in a single loop that generally follows the contours of the outer perimeter of the bottom sheet 30 slightly inward of the outer perimeter.
- FIG. 6 shows the cushioning member 36 disposed on the inner surface 34 (see FIG. 3 ) of the bottom sheet 30 over the adhesive 50 .
- FIG. 7 shows the top sheet 28 then disposed over the cushioning member 36 so that the cushioning member 36 is between the inner surfaces 32 , 34 of the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30 as in FIG. 2 . If any adhesive extends on the inner surface 34 outward of the cushioning member 36 , the inner surfaces 32 , 34 of the sheets 28 , 30 can be placed into contact with one another at the peripheries 28 A, 30 A around the cushioning member 36 to define the peripheral flange 24 A and enclose the cushioning member 36 in the internal cavity 26 shown in FIG. 2 .
- the sheets 28 , 30 can be sewn together at the peripheries 28 A, 30 A with the first series of stitches 40 to define the peripheral flange 24 A as shown in FIG. 8 .
- Thermal bonding e.g., heat sealing
- welding e.g., radio-frequency welding
- compression molding are other possible steps for securing the peripheries 28 A, 30 A of the sheets 28 , 30 to one another to define the peripheral flange 24 A.
- Manufacturing of the strobel 12 of FIG. 8 is now complete and the casing 24 and cushioning member 36 are a single unit for convenient handling when securing to the upper 16 .
- the strobel 12 can alternatively be assembled by placing the cushioning member 36 on the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 (e.g., with the top sheet 28 resting upside down on its exterior surface 18 ), and then placing the bottom sheet 30 over the cushioning member 36 before stitching at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the strobel 12 is shown aligned with the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 .
- the upper 16 may have locating features that are spaced markings, notches, protrusions, or apertures along its lower perimeter 16 A near where it is stitched to the strobel 12 .
- the strobel 12 may also have locating features (e.g., the notches, markings, and/or apertures) that may have a relative spacing identical to that of the locating features of the upper 16 .
- the locating features of the upper 16 may be aligned with those of the strobel 12 prior to stitching or otherwise securing the peripheral flange 24 A of the strobel 12 to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 so that the upper 16 and strobel 12 are properly aligned with one another when stitching along the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the upper 16 is shown with locating features (e.g., markings or apertures 51 A) that can be aligned with locating features (e.g., notches 51 B) of the strobel 12 for this purpose.
- the peripheral flange 24 A of the casing 24 is then secured to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 as shown in FIG. 10 .
- securing the peripheral flange 24 A to the upper 16 may be by sewing using a strobel machine.
- a second series of stitches 52 (also referred to herein as stitching 52 ) is shown in FIG. 10 extending around the entire peripheral flange 24 A outward of the first series of stitches 40 , if stitches 40 are used to secure the sheets 28 , 30 to one another at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the upper 16 and the strobel 12 define the foot-receiving void 17 of the article of footwear 10 , with the exterior surface 18 of the casing 24 facing away from the cavity 26 (see FIG. 2 ) of the strobel 12 .
- the top surface 18 of the top sheet 28 is a foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 12 within the foot-receiving void 17 .
- the upper 16 with the strobel 12 secured thereto is now placed on a footwear last 54 , a manufacturing step that is referred to as lasting the upper 16 .
- the last 54 can be configured with locating features that have the same relative spacing as locating features of the strobel 12 and/or the upper 16 .
- the locating features 51 C may be, for example, markings on or apertures in the last 54 that align with locating features 51 B of the strobel 12 .
- the lasting process ensures that the upper 16 is sufficiently stretched and shaped to properly secure to the midsole 14 .
- the strobel 12 is configured (e.g., properly shaped and sized) to secure to the lower perimeter 16 A helping to ensure a properly shaped upper 16 .
- the midsole 14 with the recess 44 in the upper surface 42 shown in FIG. 12 is then aligned with the lower exterior surface 56 of the bottom sheet 30 of the strobel 12 (e.g., the bottom exterior surface 56 of the strobel 12 ) with the upper surface 42 facing the bottom exterior surface 56 as shown in FIG. 13 .
- Adhesive may be disposed on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 and/or on the exterior surface 56 of the strobel 12 or the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 , and the midsole 14 is pressed against the bottom exterior surface 56 and the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 to secure the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 to at least one of the upper 16 or the lower exterior surface 56 of the strobel 12 such that at least a portion of the cushioning member 36 rests in the recess 44 in the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 below the peripheral flange 42 A as discussed with respect to FIG. 4 .
- FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 112 including the casing 24 and at least one cushioning member 136 .
- the strobel 112 is identical to the strobel 12 except that the cushioning member 136 is a fluid-filled chamber used in place of the foam cushioning member 36 .
- the cushioning member 136 includes a first polymeric sheet 128 and a second polymeric sheet 130 .
- the first polymeric sheet 128 is secured to the second polymeric sheet 130 at a peripheral flange 131 to enclose an interior cavity 186 defined by the polymeric sheets between inner surfaces of the polymeric sheets 128 , 130 .
- a “fluid” filling the interior cavity 186 may be a gas, such as air, nitrogen, another gas, or a combination thereof.
- the cushioning member 136 may be “full length” extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , or may extend only in one of the regions, 19 , 21 , or 23 , or may extend in any two adjacent ones of the regions 19 , 21 , and 23 .
- the first and second polymeric sheets 128 , 130 can be a variety of polymeric materials that can resiliently retain a fluid such as nitrogen, air, or another gas.
- polymeric materials for the first and second polymeric sheets 128 , 130 include thermoplastic urethane, polyurethane, polyester, polyester polyurethane, and polyether polyurethane.
- the first and second polymeric sheets 128 , 130 can each be formed of layers of different materials including polymeric materials.
- each of the first and second polymeric sheets 128 , 130 is formed from thin films having one or more thermoplastic polyurethane layers with one or more barrier layers of a copolymer of ethylene and vinyl alcohol (EVOH) that is impermeable to the pressurized fluid contained therein such as a flexible microlayer membrane that includes alternating layers of a gas barrier material and an elastomeric material, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,082,025 and 6,127,026 to Bonk et al. which are incorporated by reference in their entireties.
- EVOH ethylene and vinyl alcohol
- the layers may include ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer, thermoplastic polyurethane, and a regrind material of the ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer and thermoplastic polyurethane.
- suitable materials for the first and second polymeric sheets 128 , 130 are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,183,156 and 4,219,945 to Rudy which are incorporated by reference in their entireties.
- Further suitable materials for the first and second polymeric sheets 128 , 130 include thermoplastic films containing a crystalline material, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,936,029 and 5,042,176 to Rudy, and polyurethane including a polyester polyol, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos.
- the casing 24 including the top sheet 28 , the bottom sheet 30 , and the peripheral flange 24 A at which the sheets 28 , 30 are joined by stitching 40 or otherwise is the same as described with respect to FIG. 2 .
- the top sheet 28 may conform to the first polymeric sheet 128 and the lower sheet 30 may conform to the second polymeric sheet 130 and/or inner surfaces of the sheets 28 , 30 may be adhered to exterior surfaces of the first and second polymeric sheets 128 , 130 .
- the peripheral flange 131 of the cushioning member 136 may be entirely or at least partially inward of the peripheral flange 24 A of the casing 24 so that the upper and lower sheets 28 , 30 interface with one another at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 110 including the strobel 112 of FIG. 14 .
- the article of footwear 110 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 112 instead of strobel 12 , and with the exterior surface of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface 18 of the strobel 112 within the void 17 .
- FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 212 including the casing 24 as described with respect to FIGS. 1 - 4 , and including both a first cushioning member 236 A and a second cushioning member 236 B in place of the single cushioning member 36 .
- the strobel 212 is identical to the strobel 12 except that a first cushioning member 236 A and a second cushioning member 236 B are included, and at least a portion of the first cushioning member 236 A overlies the second cushioning member 236 B.
- Both of the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B may be “full length” extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , and may have the same shape in the X and Y directions so that the first cushioning member 236 A completely overlies the second cushioning member 236 B.
- the height of the strobel 212 is thus dependent upon the thickness of the first cushioning member 236 A and the thickness of the second cushioning member 236 B at the cross section shown, where thickness is in the Z direction (vertically in the view shown).
- the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B may have different lengths and/or widths so that, at some portions of the strobel 212 , the height of the strobel 212 in the Z direction is dependent in part on the thickness of the first cushioning member 236 A but not on the thickness of the second cushioning member 236 B, or vice versa.
- the cushioning member 236 A is disposed between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 212 and the second cushioning member 236 B. More specifically, the cushioning member 236 A is disposed between the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 and the upper surface 239 of the second cushioning member 236 B, and the second cushioning member 236 B is disposed between the lower surface 241 of the first cushioning member 236 A and the bottom sheet 30 .
- the first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density.
- first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B may each include a different foam material and/or may have a different hardness, energy return, or density.
- the second cushioning member 236 B may be a foam material with a greater hardness than that of the first cushioning member 236 A so that the softer first cushioning member is closer to the foot contact surface 18 .
- the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B are shown having the same thickness (e.g., height in the Z direction), they may have different heights.
- the first cushioning member 236 A may be thinner than the second cushioning member 236 B or may be thicker than the second cushioning member 236 B.
- the thicknesses of each of the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B may vary in different regions of the strobel 212 .
- the first cushioning member 236 A may be thicker than the second cushioning member 236 B in the heel region 23 , thinner than the second cushioning member in the midfoot region 21 , and thicker than the second cushioning member 236 B in the forefoot region 19 .
- the method of manufacturing the strobel 212 includes arranging the first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B so that at least a portion of the first cushioning member 236 A overlies the second cushioning member 236 B in the completed strobel 212 .
- first the second cushioning member 236 B would be placed on the bottom sheet 30 so that the second cushioning member 236 B interfaces with the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30
- first cushioning member 236 A would be placed on the second cushioning member 236 B before placing the top sheet 28 over the first cushioning member 236 A so that the first cushioning member 236 A interfaces with the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 .
- first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B interfits the first cushioning member 236 A with the second cushioning member 236 B in the cavity 26 of the formed strobel 212 so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 ) interfaces with the first cushioning member 236 A, and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 ) interfaces with the second cushioning member 236 B.
- a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 24 e.g., the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28
- a second portion of the inner surface of the casing 24 e.g., the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30
- the strobel 212 is depicted as having the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 bonded to the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 of the casing at the peripheral flange 24 A to secure the top sheet 28 to the bottom sheet 30 without a first series of stitches 40 .
- the surfaces 32 , 34 can be secured to one another at the peripheral flange 24 A by thermal bonding, compression bonding, welding (e.g., radio-frequency welding), or by adhesive disposed on one or both inner surfaces 32 , 34 .
- stitching with the first series of stitches 40 shown in FIG. 1 could be used.
- FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 210 including the strobel 212 of FIG. 16 . Except for the arrangement of both first and second cushioning members 236 A and 236 B and forming the strobel 212 by securing the sheets 28 , 30 at the peripheral flange 24 A by thermal bonding, compression bonding, welding, or adhesive rather than or in addition to by stitching, the article of footwear 210 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , using strobel 212 instead of strobel 12 , and with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 .
- the article of footwear 210 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 312 including the casing 24 and at least one cushioning member 336 .
- the strobel 312 is identical to the strobel 12 except that the cushioning member 336 is used in place of the cushioning member 36 .
- At least a portion of a top surface 339 of the cushioning member 336 interfacing with the top inner surface 32 of the casing 24 is concave.
- at least a portion of the bottom surface 341 of the cushioning member 336 interfacing with the bottom inner surface 34 of the casing 24 is convex.
- the convex portion underlies the concave portion in the cross section taken along a vertical plane as shown in FIG. 18 .
- the cushioning member 336 may be molded or cut to provide the concave upper surface 339 and/or the convex bottom surface 341 . Because the top sheet 28 and the lower sheet 30 are flexible, relatively elastic material as described, they conform to the concave and convex portions of the cushioning member 336 .
- the cushioning member 336 may be “full length” extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , or may extend only in one of the regions, 19 , 21 , or 23 , or may extend in any two adjacent ones of the regions 19 , 21 , and 23 .
- FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 310 including the strobel 312 of FIG. 18 .
- the article of footwear 310 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 312 instead of strobel 12 , and with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 .
- the recess 44 in the midsole 14 may be shaped so that the concave top surface 339 retains its concave shape in the void 17 , such as by shaping the recess to follow the contour of the lower surface 341 of the cushioning member 336 , as shown in FIG. 19 . Accordingly, the foot contact surface 18 will be presented to the foot 20 as a concave surface.
- the article of footwear 310 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 412 including the casing 24 and at least one cushioning member 436 .
- the strobel 412 is identical to the strobel 12 except that the cushioning member 436 is used in place of cushioning member 36 .
- the cushioning member 436 may be “full length” extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , or may extend only in one of the regions, 19 , 21 , or 23 , or may extend in any two adjacent ones of the regions 19 , 21 , and 23 .
- At least a portion of a top surface 439 of the cushioning member 436 interfacing with the top inner surface 32 of the casing 24 is convex.
- the bottom surface 441 of the cushioning member 436 interfacing with the bottom inner surface 34 of the casing 24 is concave.
- the concave portion underlies the convex portion in the cross section taken along a vertical plane as shown in FIG. 20 .
- the cushioning member 436 may be molded or cut to provide the convex top surface 439 and/or the concave bottom surface 441 . Because the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30 are flexible, relatively elastic material as described, they conform to the convex and concave portions of the cushioning member 336 .
- FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 410 including the strobel 412 of FIG. 20 .
- the article of footwear 410 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 412 instead of strobel 12 , and with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 .
- the recess 44 in the midsole 14 may be shaped so that the convex top surface 439 retains at least some of its convex shape in the void 17 , such as by shaping the recess 44 to follow the contour of the lower surface 441 of the cushioning member 436 when the strobel 412 is secured to the upper 16 and the midsole 14 .
- the foot contact surface 18 will be presented to the foot 20 as a convex surface. This may be desirable in some regions of the footwear 410 , such as in the midfoot region 21 to support the arch of the foot 20 .
- the article of footwear 410 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 512 including the casing 24 and at least one cushioning member 536 .
- the strobel 512 is identical to the strobel 12 except that multiple cushioning members 536 are used in place of cushioning member 36 .
- Each cushioning member 536 may be a spherical bead or may have a three-dimensional shape with sides that are regular or irregular polygons.
- Each cushioning member 536 may be relatively small in volume in comparison to the volume of the cavity 26 so that multiple cushioning members overlay one another in the Z (vertical) direction, and abut one another in the X and Y directions within the cavity 26 .
- the strobel 512 may be “full length” extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , or may extend only in one of the regions, 19 , 21 , or 23 , or may extend in any two adjacent ones of the regions 19 , 21 , and 23 .
- a first cushioning member 536 A is shown overlying a second cushioning member 536 B and disposed between the foot contact surface 18 of the casing 24 and the second cushioning member 536 B.
- the cushioning members 536 may be fixed relative to one another within the cavity 26 , such as by bonding the cushioning members 536 to one another or to a binder coating the cushioning members 536 .
- the cushioning members 536 may be unfixed relative to one another in the cavity 26 and unfixed relative to the inner surfaces 32 , 34 of the upper and lower sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 within the cavity 26 . In this manner, the cushioning members 536 may shift in position within the cavity 26 under the weight of the foot 20 .
- the cushioning members 536 may be, without limitation, a foam material as described with respect to the foam material of the cushioning member 36 , for example.
- Each of the cushioning members 536 may be the same material, or there may be subsets of the cushioning members 536 comprised of different materials, and/or materials of different hardnesses, energy return, or densities.
- the strobel 512 is depicted as having the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 bonded to the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 of the casing at the peripheral flange 24 A to secure the top sheet 28 to the bottom sheet 30 without a first series of stitches 40 .
- the surfaces 32 , 34 can be secured to one another at the peripheral flange 24 A by thermal bonding, compression bonding, welding (e.g., radio-frequency welding), or by adhesive disposed on one or both inner surfaces 32 , 34 .
- stitching with the first series of stitches 40 shown in FIG. 1 could be used.
- the peripheral flange 24 A may be partially secured (e.g., around the periphery of the sheets 28 , 30 except at the heel region, for example), leaving an opening through which the cushioning members 536 are poured into or otherwise disposed in the cavity 26 , and then the remainder of the peripheral flange 24 A can be secured to seal the cushioning members 536 within the cavity 26 .
- FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 510 including the strobel 512 of FIG. 22 . Except for the plurality of cushioning members 536 and initially leaving an opening through which the cushioning members 536 are poured or otherwise disposed in the cavity 26 , the article of footwear 510 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 512 instead of strobel 12 , so that the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within the void 17 .
- the article of footwear 510 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 612 including the casing 24 as described with respect to FIGS. 1 - 4 , and including both a first cushioning member 636 A and a second cushioning member 636 B disposed in the cavity 26 between the top and bottom sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 in place of the single cushioning member 36 .
- the first cushioning member 636 A is a foam cushioning member, and may be any of the materials described with respect to the cushioning member 36 .
- the second cushioning member 636 B is a fluid-filled chamber with a first polymeric sheet 128 and a second polymeric sheet 130 configured as described with respect to the strobel 112 , and secured to one another at a peripheral flange 131 to seal and enclose an interior cavity 686 and retain fluid in the interior cavity 686 , similar to sheets 128 , 130 enclosing the larger interior cavity 186 in FIG. 14 .
- first cushioning member 636 A overlies the second cushioning member 636 B.
- the cushioning member 636 B does not extend the full length, height, or width of the cavity 26 and is instead limited to a portion of the forefoot region 19 at the medial side 25 of the forefoot region 19 .
- FIG. 25 where the periphery of the second cushioning member 636 B is represented with hidden lines below the overlying first cushioning member 636 A.
- a third cushioning member 636 C may be disposed in the heel region 23 of the cavity 26 with the first cushioning member 636 A also overlying the third cushioning member 636 C.
- the first cushioning member 636 A is a full length cushioning member, extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 .
- the first cushioning member 636 A varies in thickness and height.
- the first cushioning member is relatively thin where it overlies the cushioning members 636 B and 636 C, and is relatively thick (e.g., has a greater height in the Z direction) where it alone fills the cavity 26 , such as in the midfoot region 21 of the embodiment shown.
- the height of the strobel 412 is thus dependent upon the thickness of the first cushioning member 636 A and the thickness of the second cushioning member 636 B at the medial side 25 of the cross section shown, and is dependent only on the height of the first cushioning member 636 A at the lateral side 27 of the cross-section shown.
- the first cushioning member 636 A is disposed between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 612 and the second cushioning member 636 B near the medial side 25 of the cross-section shown. More specifically, the cushioning member 636 A is disposed between the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 and the upper surface 639 of the second cushioning member 636 B, and the second cushioning member 636 B is disposed between the lower surface 641 of the first cushioning member 636 A and the bottom sheet 30 .
- the first cushioning member 636 A and the second cushioning member 636 B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density.
- the method of manufacturing the strobel 612 includes arranging the first cushioning member 636 A and the second cushioning member 636 B so that at least a portion of the first cushioning member 636 A overlies the second cushioning member 636 B in the completed strobel 612 as shown.
- the second cushioning member 636 B would first be placed on the lower sheet 30 (along with the third cushioning member 636 C, if present) so that the second cushioning member 636 B interfaces with the inner surface 34 of the lower sheet 30 , and then the first cushioning member 636 A would be placed on the lower sheet 30 with a portion of the first cushioning member 636 A overlying the second cushioning member 636 B, another portion of the first cushioning member 636 A overlying the third cushioning member 636 C, if present, and still another portion of the first cushioning member 636 A directly on the inner surface 34 of the lower sheet 30 .
- the top sheet 28 will be placed over the first cushioning member 636 A so that the first cushioning member 636 A interfaces with the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 .
- a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 24 e.g., the inner surface 32
- FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 610 including the strobel 612 of FIGS. 24 - 25 . Except for the arrangement of both first and second cushioning members 636 A and 636 B (and the third cushioning member 636 C, if present), the article of footwear 610 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 and the article of footwear 110 of FIG. 15 except using strobel 612 instead of strobel 12 or strobel 112 , with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 .
- the article of footwear 610 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- FIG. 27 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 712 including the casing 24 as described with respect to FIGS. 1 - 4 , including both the first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B described with respect to FIG. 16 (e.g., foam cushioning members), and further including a plate 64 disposed between the first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B.
- a strobel 712 including the casing 24 as described with respect to FIGS. 1 - 4 , including both the first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B described with respect to FIG. 16 (e.g., foam cushioning members), and further including a plate 64 disposed between the first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B.
- the plate 64 may be a relatively rigid material.
- materials suitable for the plate 64 include any one of a carbon fiber composite, spring steel, fiberglass, nylon, a thermoplastic elastomer, such as polyether block amide, or a superelastic metal including nitinol.
- polyether block amide is commercially available under the tradename PEBAX®, from ARKEMA Inc. in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania USA.
- the plate 64 may be relatively flat, or may be pre-formed with some amount of curvature and variations in thickness when molded or otherwise formed in order to provide a shaped footbed and/or increased thickness for reinforcement in desired areas.
- the plate 64 could have a curved or contoured geometry that may be similar to the lower contours of the foot 20 .
- the first cushioning member 236 A overlies the plate 64 and the plate 64 overlies the second cushioning member 236 B.
- the first cushioning member 236 A overlies the second cushioning member 236 B indirectly through the plate 64 .
- the plate 64 is disposed within the cavity 26 and overlies the second cushioning member 236 B so that the plate 64 is between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 712 and the second cushioning member 236 B, and the second cushioning member 236 B is between the plate 64 and the bottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24 .
- the first cushioning member 236 A is between the plate 64 and the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 712 .
- the plate 64 may extend over the same regions as the first and second cushioning members 236 A, 236 B.
- each may be full length, extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , or may extend only in one of the regions 19 , 21 , or 23 , or may extend in any two adjacent ones of the regions 19 , 21 , and 23 .
- the plate 64 is less compressible than either of the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B and serves to distribute loading forces and reaction forces over the width and length of the second cushioning member 236 B and the first cushioning member 236 A with which it interfaces.
- forces exerted on the plate 64 through the first cushioning member 236 A are dispersed by the plate 64 over the entire upper surface of the second cushioning member 236 B.
- Forces associated with return energy exerted on the plate 64 by the underlying cushioning member 236 B are dispersed over the entire lower surface of the first cushioning member 236 A interfacing with the plate 64 .
- the strobel 712 when the strobel 712 is secured to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 in the article of footwear 710 of FIG. 28 with at least the second cushioning member 236 B partially nested in the recess 44 , loading forces of the foot 20 that may be localized (e.g., more force applied in the medial forefoot region) will cause the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B to resiliently compress, but will tend to be spread over a greater surface area of the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B than where applied by the foot 20 due to the plate 64 .
- loading forces of the foot 20 that may be localized (e.g., more force applied in the medial forefoot region) will cause the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B to resiliently compress, but will tend to be spread over a greater surface area of the cushioning members 236 A, 236 B than where applied by the foot 20 due to the plate 64 .
- the article of footwear 710 is manufactured in the same as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 , except using strobel 712 instead of strobel 12 .
- the 7 cushioning members 236 A, 236 B and the plate 64 are disposed entirely inward of the peripheral flange 24 A and the stitching 40 , 52 , with the top and bottom sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 in direct contact with one another at the flange 24 A.
- the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 is secured to the peripheral flange 24 A of the strobel 712 , the upper 16 and the strobel 712 defining a foot-receiving void 17 of the article of footwear 710 , with the exterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of the strobel 712 within the foot-receiving void 17 , and the article of footwear 710 characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 defines the recess 44
- the strobel 712 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a portion of the second cushioning member 236 B is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- Forming the strobel 712 includes arranging the first cushioning member 236 A and the second cushioning member 236 B so that the first cushioning member 236 A is disposed between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 712 and the second cushioning member 236 B. Forming the strobel 712 further includes disposing the plate 64 within the cavity 26 so that the plate 64 is between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 712 and the second cushioning member 236 B, and the second cushioning member 236 B is between the plate 64 and the bottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24 .
- FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 812 .
- the strobel 812 is identical to the strobel 712 except that the cushioning member 136 of FIG. 14 (e.g., a fluid-filled chamber) is used as the second cushioning member in place of cushioning member 236 B.
- the second cushioning member 136 may be pressurized with fluid in the cavity 186 to provide a different compressibility and energy return than the cushioning member 236 A.
- FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 810 including the strobel 812 of FIG. 29 .
- the article of footwear 810 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 812 instead of strobel 12 , and with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 , and the article of footwear 810 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 defines the recess 44
- the strobel 812 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a portion of the second cushioning member 136 is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- FIG. 31 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 912 .
- the strobel 912 is identical to the strobel 12 of FIG. 2 except that the plate 64 is included in the casing 24 , overlying the cushioning member 36 .
- the plate 64 is disposed within the cavity 26 and overlies the cushioning member 36 so that the plate 64 is between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 912 and the cushioning member 36 , and the cushioning member 36 is between the plate 64 and the bottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24 .
- the plate 64 may extend over the same regions as the cushioning member 36 .
- each may be full length, extending in the forefoot region 19 , the midfoot region 21 , and the heel region 23 , or may extend only in one of the regions, 19 , 21 , or 23 , or may extend in any two adjacent ones of the regions 19 , 21 , and 23 .
- the plate 64 is less compressible than the cushioning member 36 and serves to distribute loading forces and reaction forces over the width and length of the cushioning member 36 with which it interfaces.
- FIG. 32 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 910 including the strobel 912 of FIG. 31 .
- the article of footwear 910 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , using the casing 24 as described with respect to FIGS. 1 - 4 , and the cushioning member 36 described with respect to FIG. 2 (e.g., foam cushioning member), and further including the plate 64 disposed between the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 and the cushioning member 36 , with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article of footwear 910 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the cushioning member 36 described with respect to FIG. 2 (e.g., foam cushioning member)
- the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 defines the recess 44 , and the strobel 912 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioning member 36 is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- FIG. 33 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 1012 .
- the strobel 1012 is identical to the strobel 912 except that the cushioning member 136 of FIG. 14 (e.g., a fluid-filled chamber) is used in place of cushioning member 36 .
- the interior cavity 186 may be inflated so that the cushioning member 136 is pressurized to provide a different compressibility and energy return than the cushioning member 36 .
- FIG. 34 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 1010 including the strobel 1012 of FIG. 33 .
- the article of footwear 1010 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 1012 instead of strobel 12 , and with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 , and the article of footwear 1010 characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 defines the recess 44
- the strobel 1012 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioning member 136 is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- FIG. 35 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 1112 including the casing 24 as described with respect to FIGS. 1 - 4 , and including both a first cushioning member 1136 A and a second cushioning member 1136 B in place of the single cushioning member 36 .
- the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 is secured to the periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 at the interface 35 of the inner surfaces 32 , 34 of the sheets 28 , 30 with adhesive, thermal bonding, and/or due to compression molding, and without any stitching used to secure the sheets 28 , 30 to one another at the peripheral flange 24 A (e.g., without the first series of stitches 40 ).
- stitching with the first series of stitches 40 shown in FIG. 1 could be used.
- first cushioning member 1136 A overlies the second cushioning member 1136 B.
- the cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B are irregularly shaped with a stepped interface 1137 . As shown in FIGS. 35 - 36 , the first cushioning member 1136 A decreases in height in a direction from the lateral side 27 to the medial side 25 while the second cushioning member 1136 B increases in height in a direction from the lateral side 27 to the medial side 25 .
- the lower surface 1141 of the first cushioning member 1136 A and the upper surface 1139 of the second cushioning member 1136 B are stepped in an identical manner in order to accommodate the decreases in height in a direction from the lateral side 27 to the medial side 25 of the first cushioning member 1136 A and the increase in height in a direction from the lateral side 27 to the medial side 25 of the second cushioning member 1136 B so that the cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B interfit with one another without gaps at the stepped interface 1137 .
- the stepped interface 1137 includes a series of vertical steps 1137 A, 1137 B, and 1137 C.
- the interface 1137 of the first and second cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B is only one non-limiting example, and the cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B may instead have different shapes in the X, Y, and Z directions than shown.
- the first cushioning member 1136 A is not a full length cushioning member, as it extends in the forefoot region 19 and the midfoot region 21 , but only partially in the heel region 23 .
- the second cushioning member 1136 B is also not full length, extending in the heel region 23 and the midfoot region 21 , but only partially in the forefoot region 19 .
- the cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B interfit so that a first portion of a top inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 ) interfaces with the first cushioning member 1136 A, and a second portion of the top inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., another portion of the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 ) interfaces with the second cushioning member 1136 B. Additionally, both the first and second cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B interface with the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 of the casing 24 .
- the height of the strobel 1112 is thus dependent upon the thickness of the first cushioning member 1136 A and the thickness of the second cushioning member 1136 B at the cross section shown, where thickness is in the Z direction (vertically in the view shown), while at other locations (e.g., near the medial and lateral sides), the height of the strobel 1112 is dependent on only the first cushioning member 1136 A but not the second cushioning member 1136 B, or on the second cushioning member 1136 B but not the first cushioning member 1136 A.
- the first cushioning member 1136 A is disposed between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 1112 and the second cushioning member 1136 B. More specifically, the cushioning member 1136 A is disposed between the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 and the upper surface 1139 of the second cushioning member 1136 B, and the second cushioning member 1136 B is disposed between the lower surface 1141 of the first cushioning member 1136 A and the bottom sheet 30 .
- the first cushioning member 1136 A and the second cushioning member 1136 B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density.
- both the first cushioning member 1136 A and the second cushioning member 1136 B may include a different foam material and may have a different hardness, energy return, or density.
- the second cushioning member 1136 B may be a foam material with a greater hardness than that of the first cushioning member 1136 A such as to provide greater support at the medial side 25 of the strobel 1112 to help prevent pronation.
- the method of manufacturing the strobel 1112 includes arranging the first cushioning member 1136 A and the second cushioning member 1136 B so that at least a portion of the first cushioning member 1136 A overlies the second cushioning member 1136 B in the completed strobel 1112 .
- the cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B could first be interfit in this manner and then placed together on the surface 34 of the lower sheet 30 , or either cushioning member 1136 A, 1136 B could be placed on the bottom sheet 30 in FIG.
- the other cushioning member 1136 A, 1136 B could be interfit with the cushioning member 1136 A or 1136 B already on the bottom sheet 30 before placing the top sheet 28 over the first cushioning member 1136 A and the second cushioning member 1136 B so that both cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B interface with the inner surfaces 32 , 34 of both the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30 .
- Forming the strobel 1112 includes arranging the first cushioning member 1136 A and the second cushioning member 1136 B so that the first cushioning member 1136 A is disposed between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 1112 and the second cushioning member 1136 B where the cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B interface.
- FIG. 37 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 1110 including the strobel 1112 of FIG. 35 .
- the article of footwear 1110 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 1112 instead of strobel 12 , and with the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 , and the article of footwear 1110 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 defines the recess 44
- the strobel 1112 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioning member 1136 B is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the cushioning member 1136 B is also disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the cushioning members 1136 A, 1136 B are disposed entirely inward of the peripheral flange 24 A and the stitching 52 , with the top and bottom sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 in direct contact with one another at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 is secured to the peripheral flange 24 A of the strobel 1112 , the upper 16 and the strobel 1112 defining the foot-receiving void 17 of the article of footwear 1110 , with the exterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of the strobel 1112 .
- FIG. 38 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 1212 including the casing 24 and at least one cushioning member 1236 .
- the cushioning member 1236 may be a unitary foam cushioning member configured with a central portion 1211 and a peripheral flange portion 1213 surrounding and extending outward from the central portion 1211 .
- the central portion 1211 is thicker than the peripheral flange portion 1213 and the peripheral flange portion 1213 is vertically offset such that it is nearer to a top surface 1215 of the central portion 1211 than to a bottom surface 1217 of the central portion 1211 .
- the cushioning member 1236 may thus be referred to as T-shaped in cross section.
- the strobel 1212 may be manufactured by stitching the casing 24 to the cushioning member 1236 with the series of stitches 40 (also referred to as stitching) extending through the peripheral flange portion 1213 of the cushioning member 1236 and with the sheets 28 , 30 secured to one another and with the peripheral flange 24 A of the casing 24 , the stitching 40 joining the peripheral flange portion 1213 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1236 to the peripheral flange 24 A of the casing 24 .
- the series of stitches 40 also referred to as stitching
- the cushioning member 1236 with the central portion 1211 and the flange portion 1213 as described enables the peripheral flange 24 A of the casing 24 to be closer to the top surface 1215 than to the bottom surface 1217 .
- the central portion 1211 can extend down into the recess 44 , resting on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 , while the flange portion 1213 enables the top sheet 28 of the casing 24 to remain relatively flat even at the peripheral flange 24 A, without dipping downward at the peripheral flange 24 A. Accordingly, little or no change in elevation of the strobel 1212 is apparent at the foot contact surface 18 in comparison to an embodiment in which the peripheral flange 24 A is vertically centered rather than offset vertically upward as it is in FIG. 39 .
- FIG. 39 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 1210 including the strobel 1212 of FIG. 38 .
- the article of footwear 1210 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 1212 instead of strobel 12 .
- the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article of footwear 1210 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 defines the recess 44 , and the strobel 1212 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioning member 1236 is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the portion of the cushioning member 1236 disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A is a lower extent of the central portion 1211 .
- the entire cushioning member 1236 is disposed inward of the flange 24 A and stitching 52 secures the flange 24 A to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 , with the top and bottom sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 in direct contact with one another at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the upper 16 and the strobel 1212 define the foot-receiving void 17 of the article of footwear 1210 , with the exterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of the strobel 1212 .
- FIG. 40 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 1312 including the casing 24 and the cushioning member 1236 .
- the strobel 1312 is identical to strobel 1212 except that the series of stitches 40 extend only through the top and bottom sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 at the peripheral flange 24 A and not through the flange portion 1213 of the cushioning member 1236 .
- FIG. 41 shows the cushioning member 1236 , indicating that the peripheral flange portion 1213 extends around an entire periphery of the cushioning member 1236 .
- FIG. 42 shows the midsole 14 with the recess 44 . It is apparent from FIGS.
- the midsole 14 underlies the bottom surface 1217 of the central portion 1211 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1236 with the bottom sheet 30 therebetween.
- the midsole 14 interfaces with and underlies the casing 24 below the bottom surface 1217 of the central portion 1211 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1236 .
- FIG. 43 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 1310 including the strobel 1312 of FIG. 40 .
- the article of footwear 1310 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 1312 instead of strobel 12 .
- the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article of footwear 1310 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the strobel 1312 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a lower extent of the cushioning member 1236 is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the cushioning member 1236 is disposed entirely inward of the flange 24 A and stitching 52 secures the peripheral flange 24 A to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 , with the upper and lower sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 in direct contact with one another at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the upper 16 and the strobel 1312 define the foot-receiving void 17 of the article of footwear 1310 , with the exterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of the strobel 1312 .
- FIG. 44 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel 1412 including a casing 1424 and a cushioning member 1436 .
- the strobel 1412 is configured similar to the strobel 1212 with the cushioning member 1436 including a central portion 1411 and a peripheral flange portion 1413 surrounding and extending outward from the central portion 1411 .
- the cushioning member 1436 may be a unitary foam cushioning member, with the central portion 1411 thicker than the peripheral flange portion 1413 and with the peripheral flange portion 1413 vertically offset such that it is nearer to a top surface 1415 of the central portion 1411 than to a bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1211 .
- the cushioning member 1436 may be referred to as T-shaped in cross section.
- the strobel 1412 includes a casing 1424 with a top sheet 28 as described, and with a bottom sheet 1430 that includes a central aperture 1431 , best shown in FIG. 46 .
- the peripheral flange 24 A is entirely outward of the peripheral flange portion 1413 , with the series of stitches 40 securing the top sheet 28 to the bottom sheet 1430 .
- the central portion 1411 of the foam cushioning member 1436 extends through the central aperture 1431 and the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 1430 is adhered or thermally bonded to the bottom surface 1435 of the peripheral flange portion 1413 and to an upper extent (e.g., partway down) an outer wall 1441 (e.g., a side wall) of the central portion 1411 .
- the bottom sheet 1430 may have slits 1443 that enable it to conform to both the bottom surface 1435 and the outer wall 1441 . Six slits 1443 are shown (only two are labelled), but there may be fewer than or more than six.
- the bottom sheet 1430 only extends partway down the outer wall 1441 when the casing 1424 is secured to the cushioning member 1436 .
- the lower extent of the outer wall 1441 and a bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 are thus not covered by the bottom sheet 1430 , as shown in FIG. 44 .
- the bottom sheet 1430 could be sized to extend down and cover the entire surface of the outer wall 1441 .
- FIG. 45 shows a midsole 1416 including a foam carrier component 1445 to which the strobel 1412 is secured in the article of footwear 1410 of FIG. 47 .
- the strobel 1412 is also secured at the peripheral flange 24 A to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 .
- the midsole 1416 is configured as and includes the foam carrier component 1445 , which may be a one-piece component.
- the foam carrier component 1445 has a central aperture 1447 configured as a through hole to receive the central portion 1411 of the cushioning member 1436 so that it fits to the strobel 1412 and is disposed below the bottom surface 1435 of the peripheral flange portion 1413 and is disposed outward of the outer wall 1441 of the central portion 1411 .
- the central aperture 1447 may also be referred to as a recess in the foam carrier component 1445 of the midsole 1416 .
- the bottom sheet 1430 is disposed between the peripheral flange portion 1413 and the foam carrier component 1445 , and between an upper extent of the outer wall 1441 and the foam carrier component 1445 .
- a lower extent of the foam carrier component 1445 is directly secured to the outer wall 1441 with adhesive and/or by thermal bonding (e.g., fusing).
- the foam carrier component 1445 does not extend below the bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 .
- the central portion 1411 is configured to be the full height of the foam carrier component 1445 where it abuts the outer wall 1441 .
- the central portion 1411 has a height greater than the height of the central portion 1211 of FIG. 43 , for example, which has the midsole 14 underlying it.
- With the bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 not covered by the bottom sheet 1430 it is exposed so that the outsole 22 can be secured directly to the bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 and to the bottom surface 1449 of the foam carrier component 1445 .
- the outsole 22 may be at least partially transparent below the bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 to expose the central portion 1411 to view through the outsole 22 .
- manufacturing the article of footwear 1410 is as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 , and further includes extending the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 through the central aperture 1431 , securing the midsole 1416 (e.g., the foam carrier component 1445 ) to the outer wall 1441 of the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 with the midsole 1416 disposed below the bottom surface 1435 of the peripheral flange portion 1413 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 and the central portion 1411 in the central aperture 1447 .
- the midsole 1416 interfaces with and underlies the bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 .
- the method further comprises securing the outsole 22 to the bottom surface 1449 of the midsole 1416 and to a bottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 .
- FIG. 48 is another example of a strobel 1512 .
- the strobel 1512 includes a casing 1524 that includes the top sheet 28 , the bottom sheet 30 , and an intermediate sheet 29 disposed between the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30 at the peripheral flange 24 A and extending across the cavity 26 defined between the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 and the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 .
- the bottom sheet 30 has a periphery 30 A secured to the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 and to the periphery 29 A of the intermediate sheet 29 by the first series of stitches 40 (e.g., by sewing) and/or by thermal bonding, welding, adhering, or compression molding.
- the peripheries 28 A, 29 A, 30 A together define the peripheral flange 24 A
- the intermediate sheet 29 may include a polymeric material and/or a textile material.
- the strobel 1512 includes a first cushioning member 1536 A disposed between the top sheet 28 and the intermediate sheet 29 , and a second cushioning member 1536 B disposed between the intermediate sheet 29 and the bottom sheet 30 .
- the first cushioning member 1536 A is wider than the second cushioning member 1536 B such that a peripheral portion 1513 of the first cushioning member 1536 A is outward of an outer perimeter 1541 of the second cushioning member 1536 B and inward of the peripheral flange 24 A. Similar to cushioning members 236 A and 236 B,
- the first cushioning member 1536 A and the second cushioning member 1536 B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density.
- the cushioning members 1536 A, 1536 B could be identical in material, hardness, energy return, and density.
- Forming the strobel 1512 includes arranging the first cushioning member 1536 A and the second cushioning member 1536 B so that the first cushioning member 1536 A is disposed between the foot contact surface 18 of the strobel 1512 and the second cushioning member 1536 B. Accordingly, forming the strobel 1512 includes interfitting the first cushioning member 1536 A with the second cushioning member 1536 B in the cavity 26 so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 1524 (e.g., the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 ) interfaces with the first cushioning member 1536 A and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing 1524 (e.g., the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 ) interfaces with the second cushioning member 1536 B.
- a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 1524 e.g., the inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28
- a second portion of the inner surface of the casing 1524 e.g., the inner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30
- Forming the strobel 1512 may include stacking the second cushioning member 1536 B on the bottom sheet 30 , stacking the intermediate sheet 29 on the second cushioning member 1536 B, stacking the first cushioning member 1536 A on the intermediate sheet 29 , and then stacking the top sheet 28 on the first cushioning member 1536 A before stitching the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the assembly can be done in the reverse order, from the top sheet 28 to the bottom sheet 30 , with the components inverted relative to their orientation on FIG. 48 for purposes of assembly.
- the intermediate sheet 29 is disposed between the top sheet 28 and the bottom sheet 30
- the first cushioning member 1536 A is disposed between the top sheet 28 and the intermediate sheet 29
- the second cushioning member 1536 B is disposed between the intermediate sheet 29 and the bottom sheet 30
- the periphery 30 A of the bottom sheet 30 the periphery 29 A of the intermediate sheet 29
- the periphery 28 A of the top sheet 28 secured to one another to define the peripheral flange 24 A
- the peripheral portion 1513 of the first cushioning member 1536 A outward of the perimeter 1541 of the second cushioning member 1536 B and inward of the peripheral flange 24 A
- the intermediate sheet 29 extending across the cavity 26 .
- FIG. 49 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear 1510 including the strobel 1512 of FIG. 48 .
- the article of footwear 1510 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article of footwear 10 of FIG. 4 , except using strobel 1512 instead of strobel 12 .
- the exterior surface 18 of the top sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article of footwear 1510 is characterized by the absence of an insole.
- the strobel 1512 rests on the upper surface 42 of the midsole 14 in the recess 44 such that at least a lower extent of the second cushioning member 1536 B is disposed in the recess 44 and below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the cushioning members 1536 A, 1536 B are disposed entirely inward of the peripheral flange 24 A and stitching 52 secures the peripheral flange 24 A to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 , with the upper and lower sheets 28 , 30 of the casing 24 in direct contact with one another at the peripheral flange 24 A.
- the upper 16 and the strobel 1512 define the foot-receiving void 17 of the article of footwear 1310 , with the exterior surface 18 of the casing 1524 being a foot contact surface of the strobel 1512 .
- FIG. 50 is a flow diagram of a method 1600 of manufacturing any of the articles of footwear discussed herein.
- the method 1600 includes step 1602 , providing a strobel having a casing that has a peripheral flange and defines a cavity with at least one cushioning member in the cavity.
- Step 1602 applies to any of the strobels disclosed herein.
- strobel 12 may be provided having the casing 24 with a peripheral flange 24 A enclosing a cavity 26 with at least one cushioning member 36 in the cavity.
- the strobel 12 that is provided may be formed by a separate entity than the entity carrying out the method 1600 .
- the entity providing the strobel in step 1602 may be the same entity that forms the strobel, in which case forming the strobel may include one or more sub-steps of providing the strobel in step 1602 .
- forming the strobel may include one or more sub-steps of providing the strobel in step 1602 .
- the different specific steps of forming each strobel have been discussed herein with respect to each strobel as described herein.
- the strobel After the strobel is provided, it may be aligned with the upper 16 in step 1604 in preparation for securing the strobel to the upper 16 .
- the strobel 12 is being aligned with the upper 16 via locating features 51 A, 51 B, as described.
- the peripheral flange of the strobel may be secured to the lower perimeter 16 A of the upper 16 in step 1606 , as described with respect to peripheral flange 24 A of strobel 12 being secured to the lower perimeter 16 A by the stitching 52 in FIG. 10 .
- the strobel with the upper secured thereto may be placed on a last, as shown, for example, with respect to the strobel 12 and upper 16 of FIG. 11 being placed on the last 54 .
- the midsole may be secured to the upper and/or the strobel while the upper and strobel are on the last, as shown in FIG. 13 , for example, with respect to the midsole 14 being adhered to the upper 16 (at the lower perimeter 16 A) and to the strobel 12 .
- the outsole 22 may then be secured to the midsole, as shown, for example with respect to outsole 22 secured to midsole 14 in FIG. 15 .
- the one or more cushioning members are disposed within the casing and at least a portion of the one or more cushioning members are nested in a recess 44 of the midsole so as to be disposed at least partially below the peripheral flange 24 A.
- a strobel for an article of footwear having an upper with a lower perimeter comprising: a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity; and at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity; wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel and the peripheral flange is configured for connection to the lower perimeter of the upper.
- the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material.
- top sheet comprises a textile material and the bottom sheet comprises a thermoplastic polyurethane material
- the top sheet comprises a thermoplastic polyurethane material
- the bottom sheet comprises a textile material
- both the top sheet and the bottom sheet comprise a textile material
- both the top sheet and the bottom sheet comprise a thermoplastic polyurethane material
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and at least a portion of the first cushioning member overlies the second cushioning member and is disposed between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the second cushioning member.
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and the first cushioning member interfits with the second cushioning member in the cavity so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing interfaces with the first cushioning member and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing interfaces with the second cushioning member.
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; the first cushioning member is a foam cushioning member; and the second cushioning member is a fluid-filled chamber.
- Clause 14 The strobel of clause 13, further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity between the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member.
- strobel of any of clauses 1-4 further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity and overlying the at least one cushioning member so that the plate is between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the at least one cushioning member, and the at least one cushioning member is between the plate and a bottom exterior surface of the casing.
- the at least one cushioning member is a unitary foam cushioning member configured with a central portion and a peripheral flange portion surrounding and extending outward from the central portion; the central portion is thicker than the peripheral flange portion; and the peripheral flange portion is nearer to a top surface of the central portion than to a bottom surface of the central portion.
- Clause 18 The strobel of any of clauses 16-17, wherein: the casing has a central aperture extending through a bottom of the casing; and the central portion of the foam cushioning member extends through the central aperture.
- the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material; and the strobel further comprising: an intermediate sheet disposed between the top sheet and the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange and extending across the cavity; wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member disposed between the top sheet and the intermediate sheet, and a second cushioning member disposed between the intermediate sheet and the bottom sheet; and wherein the first cushioning member is wider than the second cushioning member such that a peripheral portion of the first cushioning member is outward of a perimeter of the second cushioning member and inward of the peripheral flange.
- an article of footwear particularly according to any of the preceding clauses, the article of footwear comprising: an upper; a strobel including: a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity; and at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity; wherein a lower perimeter of the upper is secured to the peripheral flange of the strobel, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear; and wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear characterized by the absence of an insole.
- Clause 21 The article of footwear of clause 20, further comprising: a midsole; wherein: the strobel at least partially overlies the midsole; an upper surface of the midsole defines a recess; and the strobel rests on the upper surface of the midsole in the recess such that at least a portion of the at least one cushioning member is disposed in the recess and below the peripheral flange.
- Clause 22 The article of footwear of any of clauses 20-21, wherein the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material.
- top sheet includes a textile material and the bottom sheet includes a thermoplastic polyurethane material
- the top sheet includes a thermoplastic polyurethane material and the bottom sheet includes a textile material
- both the top sheet and the bottom sheet include a textile material
- both the top sheet and the bottom sheet include a thermoplastic polyurethane material
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and at least a portion of the first cushioning member overlies the second cushioning member and is disposed between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the second cushioning member.
- Clause 26 The article of footwear of clause 25, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density.
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and the first cushioning member interfits with the second cushioning member in the cavity so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing interfaces with the first cushioning member and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing interfaces with the second cushioning member.
- Clause 28 The article of footwear of clause 27, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density.
- Clause 29 The article of footwear of any of clauses 27-28, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member interfit with one another such that both interface with a top inner surface of the casing.
- Clause 30 The article of footwear of clause 29, wherein the first cushioning member partially overlies the second cushioning member in the cavity.
- Clause 31 The article of footwear of clause 20, wherein: at least a portion of a top surface of the at least one cushioning member interfacing with a top inner surface of the casing is convex; or at least a portion of the top the surface of the at least one cushioning member interfacing with the top inner surface of the casing is concave.
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; the first cushioning member is a foam cushioning member; and the second cushioning member is a fluid-filled chamber.
- Clause 33 The article of footwear of clause 32, wherein: at least a portion of the first cushioning member overlies the second cushioning member and is disposed between the foot contact surface of the casing and the second cushioning member.
- Clause 34 The article of footwear of clause 33, further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity between the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member.
- Clause 35 The article of footwear of clause 20, further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity and overlying the at least one cushioning member so that the plate is between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the at least one cushioning member, and the at least one cushioning member is between the plate and a bottom exterior surface of the casing.
- the at least one cushioning member is a unitary foam cushioning member configured with a central portion and a peripheral flange portion surrounding and extending outward from the central portion; and the central portion is thicker than the peripheral flange portion; and the peripheral flange portion is nearer to a top surface of the central portion than to a bottom surface of the central portion.
- Clause 37 The article of footwear of clause 36, further comprising: a first line of stitching extending through the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member and the peripheral flange of the casing, the stitching joining the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member to the peripheral flange of the casing; and a second line of stitching extending through the peripheral flange of the casing and the lower perimeter of the upper to secure the strobel to the upper, the second line of stitching disposed between a peripheral edge of the peripheral flange and the first line of stitching such that the second line of stitching is outward of the first line of stitching and not extending through the unitary foam cushioning member.
- Clause 38 The article of footwear of clause 36, further comprising: a midsole, wherein: the strobel at least partially overlies the midsole; the casing has a central aperture extending through a bottom of the casing; the central portion of the foam cushioning member extends through the central aperture; and the midsole includes a foam carrier component disposed below a bottom surface of the peripheral flange portion of the foam cushioning member and disposed outward of an outer wall of the central portion of the foam cushioning member.
- Clause 39 The article of footwear of clause 38, further comprising an outsole secured to a bottom surface of the foam carrier component and to a bottom surface of the central portion of the foam cushioning member.
- the midsole includes a foam carrier component disposed below a bottom surface of the peripheral flange portion of the foam cushioning member and disposed outward of an outer wall of the central portion of the foam cushioning member; and the foam carrier component underlies a bottom surface of the central portion of the foam cushioning member.
- Clause 42 The article of footwear of clause 41, further comprising an outsole secured to a bottom surface of the foam carrier component.
- the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material; and the article of footwear further comprising: an intermediate sheet disposed between the top sheet and the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange and extending across the cavity; wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member disposed between the top sheet and the intermediate sheet, and a second cushioning member disposed between the intermediate sheet and the bottom sheet; and wherein the first cushioning member is wider than the second cushioning member such that a peripheral portion of the first cushioning member is outward of a perimeter of the second cushioning member and inward of the peripheral flange.
- Clause 44 A method of manufacturing an article of footwear particularly according to any of the preceding clauses, the method comprising: securing a peripheral flange of a casing of a strobel to a lower perimeter of an upper, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear, the strobel having at least one cushioning member, the casing defining a cavity, and the at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity; and wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear characterized by the absence of an insole.
- Clause 45 The method of clause 44, further comprising: lasting the upper after securing the peripheral flange of the casing to the lower perimeter of the upper.
- Clause 46 The method of clause 44, further comprising: securing an upper surface of a midsole to at least one of the upper or a lower exterior surface of the strobel such that at least a portion of the at least one cushioning member of the strobel rests in a recess in the upper surface of the midsole below the peripheral flange.
- Clause 48 The method of any of clauses 44-47, wherein the casing includes a top sheet having a periphery and a bottom sheet having a periphery; and the method further comprising: forming the strobel by: disposing the at least one cushioning member between the top sheet and the bottom sheet; and securing the periphery of the bottom sheet to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet with the at least one cushioning member in the cavity.
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density; and forming the strobel further includes: arranging the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member so that at least a portion of the first cushioning member is disposed between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the second cushioning member.
- the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density; and forming the strobel further includes: interfitting the first cushioning member with the second cushioning member in the cavity so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing interfaces with the first cushioning member and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing interfaces with the second cushioning member.
- the at least one cushioning member is a unitary foam cushioning member configured with a central portion and a peripheral flange portion surrounding and extending outward from the central portion; the central portion is thicker than the peripheral flange portion; and forming the strobel further includes: stitching the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member to the top sheet and the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange of the casing with the peripheral flange portion nearer to a top surface of the central portion than to a bottom surface of the central portion, the stitching joining the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member to the peripheral flange of the casing.
- Clause 54 The method of clause 53, wherein the casing has a central aperture extending through a bottom sheet; and forming the strobel further includes: extending the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member through the central aperture.
- Clause 55 The method of clause 54, further comprising: securing a midsole to an outer wall of the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member with the midsole disposed below a bottom surface of the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member.
- Clause 57 The method of clause 55, further comprising: securing an outsole to a bottom surface of the midsole.
- Clause 58 The method of clause 55, further comprising: securing an outsole to a bottom surface of the midsole and to a bottom surface of the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member.
- the casing includes a top sheet having a periphery and a bottom sheet having a periphery; wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density; and forming the strobel further includes: disposing an intermediate sheet between the top sheet and the bottom sheet; disposing the first cushioning member between the top sheet and the intermediate sheet; disposing the second cushioning member between the intermediate sheet and the bottom sheet; and securing the periphery of the bottom sheet, a periphery of the intermediate sheet, and the periphery of the top sheet to one another to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet with the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member in cavity; wherein the first cushioning member is wider than the second cushioning member such that a peripheral portion of the first
- An “article of footwear”, a “footwear article of manufacture”, and “footwear” may be considered to be both a machine and a manufacture. Assembled, ready to wear footwear articles (e.g., shoes, sandals, boots, etc.), as well as discrete components of footwear articles (such as a midsole, an outsole, an upper component, etc.) prior to final assembly into ready to wear footwear articles, are considered and alternatively referred to herein in either the singular or plural as “article(s) of footwear”.
- footwear articles e.g., shoes, sandals, boots, etc.
- discrete components of footwear articles such as a midsole, an outsole, an upper component, etc.
- longitudinal refers to a direction extending along a length of a component.
- a longitudinal direction of a shoe extends between a forefoot region and a heel region of the shoe.
- the term “forward” or “anterior” is used to refer to the general direction from a heel region toward a forefoot region, and the term “rearward” or “posterior” is used to refer to the opposite direction, i.e., the direction from the forefoot region toward the heel region.
- a component may be identified with a longitudinal axis as well as a forward and rearward longitudinal direction along that axis.
- the longitudinal direction or axis may also be referred to as an anterior-posterior direction or axis.
- transverse refers to a direction extending along a width of a component.
- a transverse direction of a shoe extends between a lateral side and a medial side of the shoe.
- the transverse direction or axis may also be referred to as a lateral direction or axis or a mediolateral direction or axis.
- vertical refers to a direction generally perpendicular to both the lateral and longitudinal directions. For example, in cases where a sole is planted flat on a ground surface, the vertical direction may extend from the ground surface upward. It will be understood that each of these directional adjectives may be applied to individual components of a sole.
- upward or “upwards” refers to the vertical direction pointing towards a top of the component, which may include an instep, a fastening region and/or a throat of an upper.
- downward or “downwards” refers to the vertical direction pointing opposite the upwards direction, toward the bottom of a component and may generally point towards the bottom of a sole structure of an article of footwear.
- the “interior” of an article of footwear refers to portions at the space that is occupied by a wearer's foot when the shoe is worn.
- the “inner side” of a component refers to the side or surface of the component that is (or will be) oriented toward the interior of the component or article of footwear in an assembled article of footwear.
- the “outer side” or “exterior” of a component refers to the side or surface of the component that is (or will be) oriented away from the interior of the shoe in an assembled shoe.
- other components may be between the inner side of a component and the interior in the assembled article of footwear.
- other components may be between an outer side of a component and the space external to the assembled article of footwear.
- the terms “inward” and “inwardly” refer to the direction toward the interior of the component or article of footwear, such as a shoe
- the terms “outward” and “outwardly” refer to the direction toward the exterior of the component or article of footwear, such as the shoe.
- proximal refers to a direction that is nearer a center of a footwear component, or is closer toward a foot when the foot is inserted in the article of footwear as it is worn by a user.
- distal refers to a relative position that is further away from a center of the footwear component or is further from a foot when the foot is inserted in the article of footwear as it is worn by a user.
- proximal and distal may be understood to provide generally opposing terms to describe relative spatial positions.
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Abstract
A strobel for an article of footwear may include a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity. The strobel may also include at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity. An exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity may be a foot contact surface of the strobel and the peripheral flange may be configured for connection to a lower perimeter of a footwear upper of an article of footwear. A method of manufacturing an article of footwear includes securing a peripheral flange of the casing to a lower perimeter of an upper, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear, the strobel having at least one cushioning member.
Description
- This application is a divisional of U.S. Nonprovisional patent application Ser. No. 17/193,438, filed Mar. 5, 2021, which claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/000,034 filed Mar. 26, 2020, and each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
- The present disclosure generally relates to a strobel for an article of footwear that includes a casing and a cushioning member in the casing, an article of footwear including the strobel, and a method of manufacturing the article of footwear including the strobel.
- Footwear sole structures are often configured with a midsole configured to provide cushioning and energy return. Footwear uppers are often lasted with a strobel that closes a lower portion of the upper and overlies the midsole. In order to tightly fit the upper to the last, the strobel is generally a relatively inelastic component. Traditional strobels thus do not serve as cushioning components, and in fact may change the desired cushioning dynamic and reduce the cushioning effect of the underlying midsole as felt by the wearer. Some traditional strobels may be somewhat stiff and may be generally harder than the underlying midsole. An insole, sometimes referred to as a sockliner, is often disposed over the strobel in the foot-receiving void of the upper in order to provide cushioning above the relatively hard strobel. The insole may be removable or fixed to the upper or sole structure. This adds to the weight and expense of the footwear.
- The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only, are schematic in nature, and are intended to be exemplary rather than to limit the scope of the disclosure.
-
FIG. 1 is a perspective illustration of an article of footwear. -
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional illustration of a strobel included in the article of footwear, the strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel for the article of footwear. -
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional illustration of the article of footwear ofFIG. 1 taken at lines 4-4 inFIG. 1 . -
FIG. 5 is a perspective illustration of a bottom sheet of the casing of the strobel ofFIG. 2 with adhesive disposed thereon. -
FIG. 6 is a perspective illustration of the bottom sheet ofFIG. 1 with the cushioning component ofFIG. 2 thereon. -
FIG. 7 is a perspective illustration of a top sheet of the casing of the strobel ofFIG. 2 overlying the cushioning component and bottom sheet ofFIG. 6 . -
FIG. 8 is a perspective illustration of the top sheet and the bottom sheet secured at a peripheral flange via stitching, with the cushioning member in a cavity formed between the sheets. -
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the strobel ofFIG. 8 aligned with a footwear upper. -
FIG. 10 is perspective view of the upper ofFIG. 9 joined to the strobel ofFIG. 9 at the peripheral flange. -
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the upper and strobel ofFIG. 10 aligned with a footwear last for placement thereon. -
FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a midsole having an upper surface that defines a recess. -
FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the midsole ofFIG. 12 aligned with the lasted strobel and upper for attachment thereto. -
FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 14 . -
FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 16 . -
FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 18 . -
FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 20 . -
FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 22 . -
FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing, a first cushioning member, and a second cushioning member. -
FIG. 25 is a plan view of the strobel ofFIG. 24 . -
FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 25 taken at lines 26-26 of the strobel inFIG. 25 . -
FIG. 27 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 27 . -
FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 29 . -
FIG. 31 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 32 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 31 . -
FIG. 33 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 34 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 33 . -
FIG. 35 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel taken at lines 35-35 inFIG. 36 , including a casing, a first cushioning member, and a second cushioning member. -
FIG. 36 is a plan view of the strobel ofFIG. 35 . -
FIG. 37 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIGS. 35-36 . -
FIG. 38 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 39 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 38 . -
FIG. 40 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 41 is a perspective view of the cushioning member of the strobel ofFIG. 40 . -
FIG. 42 is a perspective view of a midsole. -
FIG. 43 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 40 and the midsole ofFIG. 42 . -
FIG. 44 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 45 is a perspective view of another example of a midsole. -
FIG. 46 is a perspective view of a bottom sheet of a casing of the strobel ofFIG. 44 . -
FIG. 47 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 44 and the midsole ofFIG. 45 . -
FIG. 48 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of a strobel including a casing and a cushioning member. -
FIG. 49 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article of footwear including the strobel ofFIG. 48 . -
FIG. 50 is a flow diagram of a method of manufacturing an article of footwear. - The present disclosure generally relates to strobels, articles of footwear, and methods of manufacturing articles of footwear that address the limitations of traditional strobel and footwear construction by effectively configuring the strobel to function as a cushioning component in addition to closing the bottom portion of the upper. The various strobels, articles of footwear, and methods of manufacturing described herein alleviate the need for any insole or other structure configured to overlie the strobel in the foot-receiving void.
- In an implementation, a strobel for an article of footwear may include a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity. The strobel may also include at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity. An exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity may be a foot contact surface of the strobel and the peripheral flange may be configured for connection to a lower perimeter of a footwear upper of an article of footwear.
- In one configuration, an article of footwear may include an upper and a strobel. The strobel may include a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity. The strobel may further include at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity. A lower perimeter of the upper may be secured to the peripheral flange of the strobel, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear. An exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity may be a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void. The article of footwear may thus be characterized by the absence of an insole.
- In an aspect, a method of manufacturing an article of footwear may include securing a peripheral flange of a casing of a strobel to a lower perimeter of an upper, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear. The strobel may have at least one cushioning member, and the casing may include at least one of a polymeric material or a textile material and may define a cavity with the at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity. An exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity may be a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear thus characterized by the absence of an insole.
- The above features and advantages and other features and advantages of the present teachings are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the modes for carrying out the present teachings when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.
- Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference numbers refer to like components,
FIG. 1 shows an article offootwear 10 that includes one example of astrobel 12 that provides the advantages described herein, such as by providing better cushioning, including increasing the cushioning effect of the underlyingsole structure 13, including amidsole 14, as felt by the wearer without an insole while still affording efficient manufacturability. - The article of
footwear 10 has an upper 16 with alower perimeter 16A to which thestrobel 12 is secured so that anexterior surface 18 of thestrobel 12 is a foot contact surface within a foot-receivingvoid 17 of the upper 16, as best shown inFIG. 4 in which afoot 20 is shown resting directly on thefoot contact surface 18, without an insole. Accordingly, theexterior surface 18 is also referred to herein as the foot contact surface. A sock or other foot covering may or may not be worn on the foot. Accordingly, the cushioning effect of thestrobel 12 and themidsole 14 is provided to thefoot 20 without an intervening traditional strobel or insole. The article offootwear 10 is characterized by the absence of an insole. Anoutsole 22 is shown underlying themidsole 14. In some examples, a unisole which serves as a combination midsole and outsole may be used in place of themidsole 14 andoutsole 22. - The upper 16 and
strobel 12 together form the foot-receivingvoid 17 configured to receive afoot 20. The upper 16 may be a variety of materials, such as leather, textiles, polymers, cotton, foam, composites, etc., and is shown inFIG. 1 with alace 15 for tightening the upper 16 around afoot 20. The upper 16 may instead be lace-less. - The
footwear 10 illustrated herein is depicted as an athletic shoe configured for sports or for wear as a leisure shoe, but thefootwear 10 is not limited to athletic or leisure shoes. Thefootwear 10 including its components described herein may be an athletic shoe, a leisure shoe, a dress shoe, a work shoe, a sandal, a slipper, a boot, or any other category of footwear. - As indicated in
FIG. 1 , thefootwear 10 may be divided into aforefoot region 19, amidfoot region 21, and aheel region 23, which are also the forefoot region, the midfoot region, and the heel region, respectively, of thestrobel 12, thesole structure 13, and the upper 16. Theforefoot region 19 generally includes portions of the article offootwear 10 corresponding with the toes and the joints connecting the metatarsals with the phalanges of thefoot 20. Themidfoot region 21 generally includes portions of the article offootwear 10 corresponding with the arch area and instep of thefoot 20, and theheel region 23 corresponds with rear portions of thefoot 20, including the calcaneus bone. Theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23 are not intended to demarcate precise areas of thefootwear 10 but are instead intended to represent general areas of thefootwear 10 to aid in the following discussion. - The
footwear 10 has amedial side 25 and alateral side 27. Themedial side 25 and thelateral side 27 extend through each of theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, each falling on an opposite side of a longitudinal midline (LM) of the article offootwear 10, as is understood by those skilled in the art. The longitudinal midline (LM) extends along a longitudinal axis of the article offootwear 10. Themedial side 25 is thus considered opposite to thelateral side 27. Themedial side 25 and thelateral side 27 may be used in reference to a component of thefootwear 10 or to thefootwear 10 as a whole. - The
midsole 14 may be a foamed polymeric material and may be at least partially a polyurethane (PU) foam, and/or a polyurethane ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) foam, and may include heat-expanded and molded EVA foam pellets. Themidsole 14 may comprise PEBAX® thermoplastic elastomer foam and may be sold under the tradename ZOOMX by NIKE, Inc. Themidsole 14 may be any of these foamed polymeric materials, and may have a different compressive stiffness than the cushioningmember 36 of thestrobel 12 described herein. - The
outsole 22 may be a more durable material than themidsole 14. For example, theoutsole 22 may include a rubber material that may be a natural rubber, or a synthetic rubber, or a combination of both. Examples of types of rubbers that may be included in theoutsole 22 include butadiene rubber, styrene-butadiene (SBR) rubber, butyl rubber, isoprene rubber, urethane rubber, nitrile rubber, neoprene rubber, ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber, ethylene-propylene rubber, urethane rubber, polynorbornene rubber, methyl methacrylate butadiene styrene (MBS) rubber, styrene ethylene butylene (SEBS) rubber, silicone rubber, and/or mixtures thereof. The rubber included in theoutsole 22 may be a virgin material, a regrind material, and/or mixtures thereof. Theoutsole 22 establishes the ground-engagingsurface 22A of the article offootwear 10 and may be one-piece or may be several discrete outsole components. In one example, theoutsole 22 may be formed from a wear-resistant material that may be textured to impart traction. - Referring to
FIG. 2 , thestrobel 12 includes a casing 24 having aperipheral flange 24A and defining acavity 26. In the embodiment shown, thecavity 26 is an enclosed cavity. Theperipheral flange 24A is an integral part of the casing 24 as described herein. More specifically, the casing 24 includes atop sheet 28 and abottom sheet 30. Theperipheral flange 24A includes aperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 as well as aperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 joined to the periphery of thetop sheet 28 to define theperipheral flange 24A and enclose thecavity 26. - In the example shown, the
peripheral flange 24A extends around and defines the entire perimeter (e.g., outwardly surrounding the cavity 26) generally in an X-Y plane of thestrobel 12, where the Z plane is the height of thestrobel 12 when viewed as inFIG. 2 (e.g., from theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 to theexterior surface 56 of thebottom sheet 30 of the casing 24). Theexterior surface 56 is also referred to as thebottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24. The cushioningmember 36 may be “full length” extending in theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, or may extend only in one of the regions, 19, 21, or 23, or may extend in any two adjacent ones of theregions member 36 is full length, and theperipheral flange 24A extends around theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23 of thestrobel 12. - The
cavity 26 is defined between aninner surface 32 of thetop sheet 28 and aninner surface 34 of thebottom sheet 30. Theexterior surface 18 of the casing 24 facing away from thecavity 26 is the foot contact surface of thestrobel 12 within the foot-receivingvoid 17 as the article offootwear 10 characterized by the absence of an insole. - The
strobel 12 also includes a cushioningmember 36 disposed in thecavity 26 entirely inward of theperipheral flange 24A. The cushioningmember 36 may be any material configured to resiliently deform under a dynamic compressive load, reducing in thickness (e.g., in the vertical direction inFIGS. 2-4 ) under the load and resiliently returning to a steady state thickness (e.g., a thickness related to the steady state load supported on thefootwear 10, such as when supporting the weight of a stationary wearer). In the embodiment ofFIGS. 2-4 , the cushioningmember 36 comprises foam, such as but not limited to a polyurethane (PU) foam, a polyurethane ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) foam, heat-expanded and molded EVA foam pellets, or PEBAX® thermoplastic elastomer foam sold under the tradename ZOOMX by NIKE, Inc. - Each of the
top sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30 includes a polymeric material or a textile material or a combination thereof that is generally stretchable and flexible to enable thesheets member 36.FIG. 2 shows a slight space between thesheets member 36 at the sides of the cushioningmember 36. However, a vacuum may be applied to completely conform the flexible, relatively elastic, and resilientlystretchable sheets member 36, eliminating any gaps between the cushioningmember 36 and the inner surfaces of thesheets cavity 26. - When the cushioning
member 36 resiliently compresses under dynamic loads applied to the article offootwear 10 by the wearer, the casing 24 will flex in accordance with the cushioningmember 36 without inhibiting the resilient deformation or energy return thereof. For example, thetop sheet 28 may include a textile material and thebottom sheet 30 may include a thermoplastic polyurethane material, or thetop sheet 28 may include a thermoplastic polyurethane material and thebottom sheet 30 may include a textile material, or both thetop sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30 may include a textile material, or both thetop sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30 may include a thermoplastic polyurethane material. - The
top sheet 28 may be secured to thebottom sheet 30 at theperipheral flange 24A by thermal bonds connecting the inner surface of theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 to the inner surface of theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 to define theperipheral flange 24A, by welding (e.g., radio-frequency welding) to connect the inner surface of theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 to the inner surface of theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 to define theperipheral flange 24A, by adhering (e.g., with adhesive applied to one or both of the top sheet and thebottom sheet 30 between) to connect the inner surface of theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 to the inner surface of theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 to define theperipheral flange 24A, by compression molding with pressure causing the inner surface of theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 to join to the inner surface of theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 to define theperipheral flange 24A, and/or by sewing theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 to theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 to define theperipheral flange 24A. - In
FIG. 2 , theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 is secured to theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 withstitching 40, also referred to herein as a first series of stitches 40. InFIG. 3 , analternative strobel 12A is alike in all aspects tostrobel 12 except that theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 is secured to theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 at theinterface 35 of theinner surfaces sheets sheets peripheral flange 24A. - The
upper surface 42 of themidsole 14 defines arecess 44, as best shown inFIG. 12 . For example, themidsole 14 may be a molded foam in which the mold cavity imparts therecess 44 at theupper surface 42. Alternatively, themidsole 14 could be cut or sculpted to provide therecess 44. As shown inFIG. 4 , thestrobel 12 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioningmember 36 is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. By nesting at least a portion of the thickness of thestrobel 12 in therecess 44 below theperipheral flange 24A, the overall stack height of themidsole 14 and thestrobel 12 is less than if norecess 44 were provided, any height difference between thetop sheet 28 at theperipheral flange 24A (e.g., at theperiphery 28A) and thetop sheet 28 over the cushioningmember 36 is less noticeable to the wearer, and themidsole 14 is better able to maintain lateral (e.g., transverse) stability of thestrobel 12 relative to themidsole 14 by at least partially surrounding theside wall 37 of the cushioningmember 36 outward of the casing 24. -
FIGS. 5-13 illustrate some of the steps of amethod 1600 of manufacturing the article offootwear 10. Themethod 1600 is also discussed with respect to the flow diagram ofFIG. 50 .FIG. 5 shows thebottom sheet 30 with adhesive 50 disposed on the inner surface 34 (e.g., the surface that will be theinner surface 34 of the casing 24 ofFIG. 2 , in the assembled strobel 12). The adhesive 50 is shown disposed in generally parallel rows extending lengthwise from themedial side 25 to thelateral side 27 of thebottom sheet 30. At least aportion 19A of theforefoot region 19 of thebottom sheet 30 may be kept free from adhesive 50. Although shown disposed in rows, the adhesive 50 may instead be disposed in a single loop that generally follows the contours of the outer perimeter of thebottom sheet 30 slightly inward of the outer perimeter. -
FIG. 6 shows the cushioningmember 36 disposed on the inner surface 34 (seeFIG. 3 ) of thebottom sheet 30 over the adhesive 50.FIG. 7 shows thetop sheet 28 then disposed over the cushioningmember 36 so that the cushioningmember 36 is between theinner surfaces top sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30 as inFIG. 2 . If any adhesive extends on theinner surface 34 outward of the cushioningmember 36, theinner surfaces sheets peripheries member 36 to define theperipheral flange 24A and enclose the cushioningmember 36 in theinternal cavity 26 shown inFIG. 2 . - Instead or in addition to adhering the
inner surfaces peripheral flange 24A, thesheets peripheries stitches 40 to define theperipheral flange 24A as shown inFIG. 8 . Thermal bonding (e.g., heat sealing), welding (e.g., radio-frequency welding) and/or compression molding are other possible steps for securing theperipheries sheets peripheral flange 24A. Manufacturing of thestrobel 12 ofFIG. 8 is now complete and the casing 24 and cushioningmember 36 are a single unit for convenient handling when securing to the upper 16. Thestrobel 12 can alternatively be assembled by placing the cushioningmember 36 on theinner surface 32 of the top sheet 28 (e.g., with thetop sheet 28 resting upside down on its exterior surface 18), and then placing thebottom sheet 30 over the cushioningmember 36 before stitching at theperipheral flange 24A. - In
FIG. 9 , thestrobel 12 is shown aligned with thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16. The upper 16 may have locating features that are spaced markings, notches, protrusions, or apertures along itslower perimeter 16A near where it is stitched to thestrobel 12. Thestrobel 12 may also have locating features (e.g., the notches, markings, and/or apertures) that may have a relative spacing identical to that of the locating features of the upper 16. The locating features of the upper 16 may be aligned with those of thestrobel 12 prior to stitching or otherwise securing theperipheral flange 24A of thestrobel 12 to thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16 so that the upper 16 andstrobel 12 are properly aligned with one another when stitching along theperipheral flange 24A. InFIG. 9 , the upper 16 is shown with locating features (e.g., markings orapertures 51A) that can be aligned with locating features (e.g.,notches 51B) of thestrobel 12 for this purpose. - The
peripheral flange 24A of the casing 24 is then secured to thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16 as shown inFIG. 10 . For example, securing theperipheral flange 24A to the upper 16 may be by sewing using a strobel machine. A second series of stitches 52 (also referred to herein as stitching 52) is shown inFIG. 10 extending around the entireperipheral flange 24A outward of the first series ofstitches 40, ifstitches 40 are used to secure thesheets peripheral flange 24A. Once thestrobel 12 is secured to the upper 16 in this manner, the upper 16 and thestrobel 12 define the foot-receivingvoid 17 of the article offootwear 10, with theexterior surface 18 of the casing 24 facing away from the cavity 26 (seeFIG. 2 ) of thestrobel 12. Stated differently, thetop surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 is afoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 12 within the foot-receivingvoid 17. - Referring to
FIG. 11 , the upper 16 with thestrobel 12 secured thereto is now placed on a footwear last 54, a manufacturing step that is referred to as lasting the upper 16. The last 54 can be configured with locating features that have the same relative spacing as locating features of thestrobel 12 and/or the upper 16. As shown inFIG. 11 , the locating features 51C may be, for example, markings on or apertures in the last 54 that align with locatingfeatures 51B of thestrobel 12. The lasting process ensures that the upper 16 is sufficiently stretched and shaped to properly secure to themidsole 14. Thestrobel 12 is configured (e.g., properly shaped and sized) to secure to thelower perimeter 16A helping to ensure a properly shaped upper 16. - The
midsole 14 with therecess 44 in theupper surface 42 shown inFIG. 12 is then aligned with thelower exterior surface 56 of thebottom sheet 30 of the strobel 12 (e.g., thebottom exterior surface 56 of the strobel 12) with theupper surface 42 facing thebottom exterior surface 56 as shown inFIG. 13 . Adhesive may be disposed on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 and/or on theexterior surface 56 of thestrobel 12 or thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16, and themidsole 14 is pressed against thebottom exterior surface 56 and thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16 to secure theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 to at least one of the upper 16 or thelower exterior surface 56 of thestrobel 12 such that at least a portion of the cushioningmember 36 rests in therecess 44 in theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 below the peripheral flange 42A as discussed with respect toFIG. 4 . -
FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 112 including the casing 24 and at least one cushioning member 136. Thestrobel 112 is identical to thestrobel 12 except that the cushioning member 136 is a fluid-filled chamber used in place of thefoam cushioning member 36. The cushioning member 136 includes afirst polymeric sheet 128 and asecond polymeric sheet 130. Thefirst polymeric sheet 128 is secured to thesecond polymeric sheet 130 at aperipheral flange 131 to enclose aninterior cavity 186 defined by the polymeric sheets between inner surfaces of thepolymeric sheets polymeric sheets peripheral flange 131 and sealed, thefirst polymeric sheet 128 and thesecond polymeric sheet 130 retain a fluid in theinterior cavity 186, and the securedpolymeric sheets interior cavity 186 may be a gas, such as air, nitrogen, another gas, or a combination thereof. The cushioning member 136 may be “full length” extending in theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, or may extend only in one of the regions, 19, 21, or 23, or may extend in any two adjacent ones of theregions - The first and second
polymeric sheets polymeric sheets polymeric sheets polymeric sheets polymeric sheets polymeric sheets polymeric sheets - The casing 24, including the
top sheet 28, thebottom sheet 30, and theperipheral flange 24A at which thesheets FIG. 2 . Thetop sheet 28 may conform to thefirst polymeric sheet 128 and thelower sheet 30 may conform to thesecond polymeric sheet 130 and/or inner surfaces of thesheets polymeric sheets peripheral flange 131 of the cushioning member 136 may be entirely or at least partially inward of theperipheral flange 24A of the casing 24 so that the upper andlower sheets peripheral flange 24A. -
FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 110 including thestrobel 112 ofFIG. 14 . The article offootwear 110 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 112 instead ofstrobel 12, and with the exterior surface of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface 18 of thestrobel 112 within thevoid 17. -
FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 212 including the casing 24 as described with respect toFIGS. 1-4 , and including both afirst cushioning member 236A and asecond cushioning member 236B in place of thesingle cushioning member 36. Accordingly, thestrobel 212 is identical to thestrobel 12 except that afirst cushioning member 236A and asecond cushioning member 236B are included, and at least a portion of thefirst cushioning member 236A overlies thesecond cushioning member 236B. Both of thecushioning members forefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, and may have the same shape in the X and Y directions so that thefirst cushioning member 236A completely overlies thesecond cushioning member 236B. The height of thestrobel 212 is thus dependent upon the thickness of thefirst cushioning member 236A and the thickness of thesecond cushioning member 236B at the cross section shown, where thickness is in the Z direction (vertically in the view shown). Alternatively, thecushioning members strobel 212, the height of thestrobel 212 in the Z direction is dependent in part on the thickness of thefirst cushioning member 236A but not on the thickness of thesecond cushioning member 236B, or vice versa. - As shown in
FIG. 16 , the cushioningmember 236A is disposed between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 212 and thesecond cushioning member 236B. More specifically, the cushioningmember 236A is disposed between thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 and theupper surface 239 of thesecond cushioning member 236B, and thesecond cushioning member 236B is disposed between thelower surface 241 of thefirst cushioning member 236A and thebottom sheet 30. Thefirst cushioning member 236A and thesecond cushioning member 236B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density. For example, thefirst cushioning member 236A and thesecond cushioning member 236B may each include a different foam material and/or may have a different hardness, energy return, or density. In one example, thesecond cushioning member 236B may be a foam material with a greater hardness than that of thefirst cushioning member 236A so that the softer first cushioning member is closer to thefoot contact surface 18. - Additionally, although the
cushioning members first cushioning member 236A may be thinner than thesecond cushioning member 236B or may be thicker than thesecond cushioning member 236B. Moreover, the thicknesses of each of thecushioning members strobel 212. In one non-limiting example, thefirst cushioning member 236A may be thicker than thesecond cushioning member 236B in theheel region 23, thinner than the second cushioning member in themidfoot region 21, and thicker than thesecond cushioning member 236B in theforefoot region 19. - The method of manufacturing the
strobel 212 includes arranging thefirst cushioning member 236A and thesecond cushioning member 236B so that at least a portion of thefirst cushioning member 236A overlies thesecond cushioning member 236B in the completedstrobel 212. With reference toFIG. 6 , for example, instead of the cushioningmember 36, first thesecond cushioning member 236B would be placed on thebottom sheet 30 so that thesecond cushioning member 236B interfaces with theinner surface 34 of thebottom sheet 30, and then thefirst cushioning member 236A would be placed on thesecond cushioning member 236B before placing thetop sheet 28 over thefirst cushioning member 236A so that thefirst cushioning member 236A interfaces with theinner surface 32 of thetop sheet 28. Placing thefirst cushioning member 236A and thesecond cushioning member 236B relative to one another in this manner interfits thefirst cushioning member 236A with thesecond cushioning member 236B in thecavity 26 of the formedstrobel 212 so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., theinner surface 32 of the top sheet 28) interfaces with thefirst cushioning member 236A, and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., theinner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30) interfaces with thesecond cushioning member 236B. - In
FIG. 16 , thestrobel 212 is depicted as having theinner surface 32 of thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 bonded to theinner surface 34 of thebottom sheet 30 of the casing at theperipheral flange 24A to secure thetop sheet 28 to thebottom sheet 30 without a first series of stitches 40. For example, thesurfaces peripheral flange 24A by thermal bonding, compression bonding, welding (e.g., radio-frequency welding), or by adhesive disposed on one or bothinner surfaces stitches 40 shown inFIG. 1 could be used. -
FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 210 including thestrobel 212 ofFIG. 16 . Except for the arrangement of both first andsecond cushioning members strobel 212 by securing thesheets peripheral flange 24A by thermal bonding, compression bonding, welding, or adhesive rather than or in addition to by stitching, the article offootwear 210 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , usingstrobel 212 instead ofstrobel 12, and with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within thevoid 17. The article offootwear 210 is characterized by the absence of an insole. -
FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 312 including the casing 24 and at least onecushioning member 336. Thestrobel 312 is identical to thestrobel 12 except that the cushioningmember 336 is used in place of the cushioningmember 36. At least a portion of atop surface 339 of the cushioningmember 336 interfacing with the topinner surface 32 of the casing 24 is concave. Additionally, in the example shown, at least a portion of thebottom surface 341 of the cushioningmember 336 interfacing with the bottominner surface 34 of the casing 24 is convex. The convex portion underlies the concave portion in the cross section taken along a vertical plane as shown inFIG. 18 . The cushioningmember 336 may be molded or cut to provide the concaveupper surface 339 and/or theconvex bottom surface 341. Because thetop sheet 28 and thelower sheet 30 are flexible, relatively elastic material as described, they conform to the concave and convex portions of the cushioningmember 336. The cushioningmember 336 may be “full length” extending in theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, or may extend only in one of the regions, 19, 21, or 23, or may extend in any two adjacent ones of theregions -
FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 310 including thestrobel 312 ofFIG. 18 . The article offootwear 310 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 312 instead ofstrobel 12, and with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within thevoid 17. Therecess 44 in themidsole 14 may be shaped so that the concavetop surface 339 retains its concave shape in the void 17, such as by shaping the recess to follow the contour of thelower surface 341 of the cushioningmember 336, as shown inFIG. 19 . Accordingly, thefoot contact surface 18 will be presented to thefoot 20 as a concave surface. The article offootwear 310 is characterized by the absence of an insole. -
FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 412 including the casing 24 and at least onecushioning member 436. Thestrobel 412 is identical to thestrobel 12 except that the cushioningmember 436 is used in place of cushioningmember 36. The cushioningmember 436 may be “full length” extending in theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, or may extend only in one of the regions, 19, 21, or 23, or may extend in any two adjacent ones of theregions top surface 439 of the cushioningmember 436 interfacing with the topinner surface 32 of the casing 24 is convex. Additionally, in the embodiment shown, at least a portion of thebottom surface 441 of the cushioningmember 436 interfacing with the bottominner surface 34 of the casing 24 is concave. The concave portion underlies the convex portion in the cross section taken along a vertical plane as shown inFIG. 20 . The cushioningmember 436 may be molded or cut to provide the convextop surface 439 and/or theconcave bottom surface 441. Because thetop sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30 are flexible, relatively elastic material as described, they conform to the convex and concave portions of the cushioningmember 336. -
FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 410 including thestrobel 412 ofFIG. 20 . The article offootwear 410 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 412 instead ofstrobel 12, and with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within thevoid 17. Therecess 44 in themidsole 14 may be shaped so that the convextop surface 439 retains at least some of its convex shape in the void 17, such as by shaping therecess 44 to follow the contour of thelower surface 441 of the cushioningmember 436 when thestrobel 412 is secured to the upper 16 and themidsole 14. Accordingly, thefoot contact surface 18 will be presented to thefoot 20 as a convex surface. This may be desirable in some regions of thefootwear 410, such as in themidfoot region 21 to support the arch of thefoot 20. The article offootwear 410 is characterized by the absence of an insole. -
FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 512 including the casing 24 and at least onecushioning member 536. Thestrobel 512 is identical to thestrobel 12 except thatmultiple cushioning members 536 are used in place of cushioningmember 36. Each cushioningmember 536 may be a spherical bead or may have a three-dimensional shape with sides that are regular or irregular polygons. Each cushioningmember 536 may be relatively small in volume in comparison to the volume of thecavity 26 so that multiple cushioning members overlay one another in the Z (vertical) direction, and abut one another in the X and Y directions within thecavity 26. Thestrobel 512 may be “full length” extending in theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, or may extend only in one of the regions, 19, 21, or 23, or may extend in any two adjacent ones of theregions foot contact surface 18 of the casing 24 and the second cushioning member 536B. Thecushioning members 536 may be fixed relative to one another within thecavity 26, such as by bonding thecushioning members 536 to one another or to a binder coating thecushioning members 536. Alternatively, thecushioning members 536 may be unfixed relative to one another in thecavity 26 and unfixed relative to theinner surfaces lower sheets cavity 26. In this manner, thecushioning members 536 may shift in position within thecavity 26 under the weight of thefoot 20. - Because the top and
bottom sheets strobel 512 may conform to the lower surface of thefoot 20. Thecushioning members 536 may be, without limitation, a foam material as described with respect to the foam material of the cushioningmember 36, for example. Each of thecushioning members 536 may be the same material, or there may be subsets of thecushioning members 536 comprised of different materials, and/or materials of different hardnesses, energy return, or densities. - The
strobel 512 is depicted as having theinner surface 32 of thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 bonded to theinner surface 34 of thebottom sheet 30 of the casing at theperipheral flange 24A to secure thetop sheet 28 to thebottom sheet 30 without a first series of stitches 40. For example, thesurfaces peripheral flange 24A by thermal bonding, compression bonding, welding (e.g., radio-frequency welding), or by adhesive disposed on one or bothinner surfaces stitches 40 shown inFIG. 1 could be used. Initially, theperipheral flange 24A may be partially secured (e.g., around the periphery of thesheets cushioning members 536 are poured into or otherwise disposed in thecavity 26, and then the remainder of theperipheral flange 24A can be secured to seal thecushioning members 536 within thecavity 26. -
FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 510 including thestrobel 512 ofFIG. 22 . Except for the plurality ofcushioning members 536 and initially leaving an opening through which thecushioning members 536 are poured or otherwise disposed in thecavity 26, the article offootwear 510 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 512 instead ofstrobel 12, so that theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within thevoid 17. The article offootwear 510 is characterized by the absence of an insole. -
FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 612 including the casing 24 as described with respect toFIGS. 1-4 , and including both afirst cushioning member 636A and asecond cushioning member 636B disposed in thecavity 26 between the top andbottom sheets single cushioning member 36. In the example shown, thefirst cushioning member 636A is a foam cushioning member, and may be any of the materials described with respect to the cushioningmember 36. Thesecond cushioning member 636B is a fluid-filled chamber with afirst polymeric sheet 128 and asecond polymeric sheet 130 configured as described with respect to thestrobel 112, and secured to one another at aperipheral flange 131 to seal and enclose aninterior cavity 686 and retain fluid in theinterior cavity 686, similar tosheets interior cavity 186 inFIG. 14 . - As is evident in
FIG. 24 , a portion of thefirst cushioning member 636A overlies thesecond cushioning member 636B. In the example shown, the cushioningmember 636B does not extend the full length, height, or width of thecavity 26 and is instead limited to a portion of theforefoot region 19 at themedial side 25 of theforefoot region 19. This is best shown inFIG. 25 where the periphery of thesecond cushioning member 636B is represented with hidden lines below the overlyingfirst cushioning member 636A. Athird cushioning member 636C may be disposed in theheel region 23 of thecavity 26 with thefirst cushioning member 636A also overlying thethird cushioning member 636C. - In the example shown, the
first cushioning member 636A is a full length cushioning member, extending in theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23. Thefirst cushioning member 636A varies in thickness and height. For example, the first cushioning member is relatively thin where it overlies thecushioning members cavity 26, such as in themidfoot region 21 of the embodiment shown. The height of thestrobel 412 is thus dependent upon the thickness of thefirst cushioning member 636A and the thickness of thesecond cushioning member 636B at themedial side 25 of the cross section shown, and is dependent only on the height of thefirst cushioning member 636A at thelateral side 27 of the cross-section shown. - As shown in
FIG. 24 , thefirst cushioning member 636A is disposed between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 612 and thesecond cushioning member 636B near themedial side 25 of the cross-section shown. More specifically, the cushioningmember 636A is disposed between thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 and theupper surface 639 of thesecond cushioning member 636B, and thesecond cushioning member 636B is disposed between thelower surface 641 of thefirst cushioning member 636A and thebottom sheet 30. Thefirst cushioning member 636A and thesecond cushioning member 636B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density. - The method of manufacturing the
strobel 612 includes arranging thefirst cushioning member 636A and thesecond cushioning member 636B so that at least a portion of thefirst cushioning member 636A overlies thesecond cushioning member 636B in the completedstrobel 612 as shown. With reference toFIG. 6 , for example, instead of the cushioningmember 36, thesecond cushioning member 636B would first be placed on the lower sheet 30 (along with thethird cushioning member 636C, if present) so that thesecond cushioning member 636B interfaces with theinner surface 34 of thelower sheet 30, and then thefirst cushioning member 636A would be placed on thelower sheet 30 with a portion of thefirst cushioning member 636A overlying thesecond cushioning member 636B, another portion of thefirst cushioning member 636A overlying thethird cushioning member 636C, if present, and still another portion of thefirst cushioning member 636A directly on theinner surface 34 of thelower sheet 30. Thetop sheet 28 will be placed over thefirst cushioning member 636A so that thefirst cushioning member 636A interfaces with theinner surface 32 of thetop sheet 28. Placing thefirst cushioning member 636A and thesecond cushioning member 636B relative to one another in this manner interfits thefirst cushioning member 636A with thesecond cushioning member 636B in thecavity 26 of the formedstrobel 612 so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., theinner surface 32 of thetop sheet 28 as well as the portion of the inner surface of thebottom sheet 30 that directly underlies thefirst cushioning member 636A) interfaces with thefirst cushioning member 636A, and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., another portion of theinner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30 (the portion that directly underlies thesecond cushioning member 636B) interfaces with thesecond cushioning member 636B. -
FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 610 including thestrobel 612 ofFIGS. 24-25 . Except for the arrangement of both first andsecond cushioning members third cushioning member 636C, if present), the article offootwear 610 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 and the article offootwear 110 ofFIG. 15 except usingstrobel 612 instead ofstrobel 12 orstrobel 112, with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within thevoid 17. The article offootwear 610 is characterized by the absence of an insole. -
FIG. 27 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 712 including the casing 24 as described with respect toFIGS. 1-4 , including both thefirst cushioning member 236A and thesecond cushioning member 236B described with respect toFIG. 16 (e.g., foam cushioning members), and further including aplate 64 disposed between thefirst cushioning member 236A and thesecond cushioning member 236B. - The
plate 64 may be a relatively rigid material. Non-limiting examples of materials suitable for theplate 64 include any one of a carbon fiber composite, spring steel, fiberglass, nylon, a thermoplastic elastomer, such as polyether block amide, or a superelastic metal including nitinol. One example polyether block amide is commercially available under the tradename PEBAX®, from ARKEMA Inc. in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania USA. - The
plate 64 may be relatively flat, or may be pre-formed with some amount of curvature and variations in thickness when molded or otherwise formed in order to provide a shaped footbed and/or increased thickness for reinforcement in desired areas. For example, theplate 64 could have a curved or contoured geometry that may be similar to the lower contours of thefoot 20. - The
first cushioning member 236A overlies theplate 64 and theplate 64 overlies thesecond cushioning member 236B. Thefirst cushioning member 236A overlies thesecond cushioning member 236B indirectly through theplate 64. Theplate 64 is disposed within thecavity 26 and overlies thesecond cushioning member 236B so that theplate 64 is between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 712 and thesecond cushioning member 236B, and thesecond cushioning member 236B is between theplate 64 and thebottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24. Thefirst cushioning member 236A is between theplate 64 and thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 712. Theplate 64 may extend over the same regions as the first andsecond cushioning members forefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, or may extend only in one of theregions regions plate 64 is less compressible than either of thecushioning members second cushioning member 236B and thefirst cushioning member 236A with which it interfaces. For example, forces exerted on theplate 64 through thefirst cushioning member 236A are dispersed by theplate 64 over the entire upper surface of thesecond cushioning member 236B. Forces associated with return energy exerted on theplate 64 by theunderlying cushioning member 236B are dispersed over the entire lower surface of thefirst cushioning member 236A interfacing with theplate 64. - Accordingly, when the
strobel 712 is secured to thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16 in the article offootwear 710 ofFIG. 28 with at least thesecond cushioning member 236B partially nested in therecess 44, loading forces of thefoot 20 that may be localized (e.g., more force applied in the medial forefoot region) will cause thecushioning members cushioning members foot 20 due to theplate 64. - The article of
footwear 710 is manufactured in the same as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17, except usingstrobel 712 instead ofstrobel 12. As shown inFIG. 27 , the 7cushioning members plate 64 are disposed entirely inward of theperipheral flange 24A and thestitching bottom sheets flange 24A. Thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16 is secured to theperipheral flange 24A of thestrobel 712, the upper 16 and thestrobel 712 defining a foot-receivingvoid 17 of the article offootwear 710, with theexterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of thestrobel 712 within the foot-receivingvoid 17, and the article offootwear 710 characterized by the absence of an insole. Theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 defines therecess 44, and thestrobel 712 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a portion of thesecond cushioning member 236B is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. - Forming the
strobel 712 includes arranging thefirst cushioning member 236A and thesecond cushioning member 236B so that thefirst cushioning member 236A is disposed between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 712 and thesecond cushioning member 236B. Forming thestrobel 712 further includes disposing theplate 64 within thecavity 26 so that theplate 64 is between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 712 and thesecond cushioning member 236B, and thesecond cushioning member 236B is between theplate 64 and thebottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24. -
FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 812. Thestrobel 812 is identical to thestrobel 712 except that the cushioning member 136 ofFIG. 14 (e.g., a fluid-filled chamber) is used as the second cushioning member in place of cushioningmember 236B. The second cushioning member 136 may be pressurized with fluid in thecavity 186 to provide a different compressibility and energy return than the cushioningmember 236A. -
FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 810 including thestrobel 812 ofFIG. 29 . The article offootwear 810 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 812 instead ofstrobel 12, and with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17, and the article offootwear 810 is characterized by the absence of an insole. Theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 defines therecess 44, and thestrobel 812 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a portion of the second cushioning member 136 is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. -
FIG. 31 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 912. Thestrobel 912 is identical to thestrobel 12 ofFIG. 2 except that theplate 64 is included in the casing 24, overlying the cushioningmember 36. Theplate 64 is disposed within thecavity 26 and overlies the cushioningmember 36 so that theplate 64 is between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 912 and the cushioningmember 36, and the cushioningmember 36 is between theplate 64 and thebottom exterior surface 56 of the casing 24. Theplate 64 may extend over the same regions as the cushioningmember 36. For example, each may be full length, extending in theforefoot region 19, themidfoot region 21, and theheel region 23, or may extend only in one of the regions, 19, 21, or 23, or may extend in any two adjacent ones of theregions plate 64 is less compressible than the cushioningmember 36 and serves to distribute loading forces and reaction forces over the width and length of the cushioningmember 36 with which it interfaces. -
FIG. 32 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 910 including thestrobel 912 ofFIG. 31 . The article offootwear 910 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , using the casing 24 as described with respect toFIGS. 1-4 , and the cushioningmember 36 described with respect toFIG. 2 (e.g., foam cushioning member), and further including theplate 64 disposed between thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 and the cushioningmember 36, with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article offootwear 910 is characterized by the absence of an insole. Theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 defines therecess 44, and thestrobel 912 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioningmember 36 is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. -
FIG. 33 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 1012. Thestrobel 1012 is identical to thestrobel 912 except that the cushioning member 136 ofFIG. 14 (e.g., a fluid-filled chamber) is used in place of cushioningmember 36. Theinterior cavity 186 may be inflated so that the cushioning member 136 is pressurized to provide a different compressibility and energy return than the cushioningmember 36. -
FIG. 34 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 1010 including thestrobel 1012 ofFIG. 33 . The article offootwear 1010 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 1012 instead ofstrobel 12, and with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17, and the article offootwear 1010 characterized by the absence of an insole. Theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 defines therecess 44, and thestrobel 1012 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioning member 136 is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. -
FIG. 35 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 1112 including the casing 24 as described with respect toFIGS. 1-4 , and including both afirst cushioning member 1136A and asecond cushioning member 1136B in place of thesingle cushioning member 36. Like thestrobel 12A inFIG. 3 , theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 is secured to theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30 at theinterface 35 of theinner surfaces sheets sheets peripheral flange 24A (e.g., without the first series of stitches 40). Alternatively or in addition, stitching with the first series ofstitches 40 shown inFIG. 1 could be used. - At least a portion of the
first cushioning member 1136A overlies thesecond cushioning member 1136B. Thecushioning members interface 1137. As shown inFIGS. 35-36 , thefirst cushioning member 1136A decreases in height in a direction from thelateral side 27 to themedial side 25 while thesecond cushioning member 1136B increases in height in a direction from thelateral side 27 to themedial side 25. Thelower surface 1141 of thefirst cushioning member 1136A and theupper surface 1139 of thesecond cushioning member 1136B are stepped in an identical manner in order to accommodate the decreases in height in a direction from thelateral side 27 to themedial side 25 of thefirst cushioning member 1136A and the increase in height in a direction from thelateral side 27 to themedial side 25 of thesecond cushioning member 1136B so that thecushioning members interface 1137. The steppedinterface 1137 includes a series ofvertical steps interface 1137 of the first andsecond cushioning members cushioning members - As shown in
FIG. 36 , thefirst cushioning member 1136A is not a full length cushioning member, as it extends in theforefoot region 19 and themidfoot region 21, but only partially in theheel region 23. Thesecond cushioning member 1136B is also not full length, extending in theheel region 23 and themidfoot region 21, but only partially in theforefoot region 19. In this arrangement, thecushioning members inner surface 32 of the top sheet 28) interfaces with thefirst cushioning member 1136A, and a second portion of the top inner surface of the casing 24 (e.g., another portion of theinner surface 32 of the top sheet 28) interfaces with thesecond cushioning member 1136B. Additionally, both the first andsecond cushioning members inner surface 34 of thebottom sheet 30 of the casing 24. In some locations, the height of thestrobel 1112 is thus dependent upon the thickness of thefirst cushioning member 1136A and the thickness of thesecond cushioning member 1136B at the cross section shown, where thickness is in the Z direction (vertically in the view shown), while at other locations (e.g., near the medial and lateral sides), the height of thestrobel 1112 is dependent on only thefirst cushioning member 1136A but not thesecond cushioning member 1136B, or on thesecond cushioning member 1136B but not thefirst cushioning member 1136A. - As shown in
FIGS. 35 and 37 , at portions of thecushioning members interface 1137, thefirst cushioning member 1136A is disposed between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 1112 and thesecond cushioning member 1136B. More specifically, the cushioningmember 1136A is disposed between thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 and theupper surface 1139 of thesecond cushioning member 1136B, and thesecond cushioning member 1136B is disposed between thelower surface 1141 of thefirst cushioning member 1136A and thebottom sheet 30. - The
first cushioning member 1136A and thesecond cushioning member 1136B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density. For example, both thefirst cushioning member 1136A and thesecond cushioning member 1136B may include a different foam material and may have a different hardness, energy return, or density. In one example, thesecond cushioning member 1136B may be a foam material with a greater hardness than that of thefirst cushioning member 1136A such as to provide greater support at themedial side 25 of thestrobel 1112 to help prevent pronation. - The method of manufacturing the
strobel 1112 includes arranging thefirst cushioning member 1136A and thesecond cushioning member 1136B so that at least a portion of thefirst cushioning member 1136A overlies thesecond cushioning member 1136B in the completedstrobel 1112. Thecushioning members surface 34 of thelower sheet 30, or eithercushioning member bottom sheet 30 inFIG. 6 , then theother cushioning member member bottom sheet 30 before placing thetop sheet 28 over thefirst cushioning member 1136A and thesecond cushioning member 1136B so that bothcushioning members inner surfaces top sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30. - Forming the
strobel 1112 includes arranging thefirst cushioning member 1136A and thesecond cushioning member 1136B so that thefirst cushioning member 1136A is disposed between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 1112 and thesecond cushioning member 1136B where thecushioning members -
FIG. 37 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 1110 including thestrobel 1112 ofFIG. 35 . The article offootwear 1110 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 1112 instead ofstrobel 12, and with theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 being the foot-contact surface within the void 17, and the article offootwear 1110 is characterized by the absence of an insole. Theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 defines therecess 44, and thestrobel 1112 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a portion of the cushioningmember 1136B is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. As shown inFIG. 37 , at least a portion of the cushioningmember 1136B is also disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. Thecushioning members peripheral flange 24A and thestitching 52, with the top andbottom sheets peripheral flange 24A. Thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16 is secured to theperipheral flange 24A of thestrobel 1112, the upper 16 and thestrobel 1112 defining the foot-receivingvoid 17 of the article offootwear 1110, with theexterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of thestrobel 1112. -
FIG. 38 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 1212 including the casing 24 and at least onecushioning member 1236. Thecushioning member 1236 may be a unitary foam cushioning member configured with acentral portion 1211 and aperipheral flange portion 1213 surrounding and extending outward from thecentral portion 1211. Thecentral portion 1211 is thicker than theperipheral flange portion 1213 and theperipheral flange portion 1213 is vertically offset such that it is nearer to atop surface 1215 of thecentral portion 1211 than to abottom surface 1217 of thecentral portion 1211. Thecushioning member 1236 may thus be referred to as T-shaped in cross section. - The
strobel 1212 may be manufactured by stitching the casing 24 to thecushioning member 1236 with the series of stitches 40 (also referred to as stitching) extending through theperipheral flange portion 1213 of thecushioning member 1236 and with thesheets peripheral flange 24A of the casing 24, thestitching 40 joining theperipheral flange portion 1213 of the unitaryfoam cushioning member 1236 to theperipheral flange 24A of the casing 24. - Configuring the
cushioning member 1236 with thecentral portion 1211 and theflange portion 1213 as described (such as by injection molding thecushioning member 1236 or cutting a foam slab) enables theperipheral flange 24A of the casing 24 to be closer to thetop surface 1215 than to thebottom surface 1217. Thecentral portion 1211 can extend down into therecess 44, resting on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14, while theflange portion 1213 enables thetop sheet 28 of the casing 24 to remain relatively flat even at theperipheral flange 24A, without dipping downward at theperipheral flange 24A. Accordingly, little or no change in elevation of thestrobel 1212 is apparent at thefoot contact surface 18 in comparison to an embodiment in which theperipheral flange 24A is vertically centered rather than offset vertically upward as it is inFIG. 39 . -
FIG. 39 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 1210 including thestrobel 1212 ofFIG. 38 . The article offootwear 1210 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 1212 instead ofstrobel 12. Theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article offootwear 1210 is characterized by the absence of an insole. Theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 defines therecess 44, and thestrobel 1212 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a portion of thecushioning member 1236 is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. The portion of thecushioning member 1236 disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A is a lower extent of thecentral portion 1211. Theentire cushioning member 1236 is disposed inward of theflange 24A andstitching 52 secures theflange 24A to thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16, with the top andbottom sheets peripheral flange 24A. The upper 16 and thestrobel 1212 define the foot-receivingvoid 17 of the article offootwear 1210, with theexterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of thestrobel 1212. -
FIG. 40 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 1312 including the casing 24 and thecushioning member 1236. Thestrobel 1312 is identical tostrobel 1212 except that the series ofstitches 40 extend only through the top andbottom sheets peripheral flange 24A and not through theflange portion 1213 of thecushioning member 1236.FIG. 41 shows thecushioning member 1236, indicating that theperipheral flange portion 1213 extends around an entire periphery of thecushioning member 1236.FIG. 42 shows themidsole 14 with therecess 44. It is apparent fromFIGS. 41 and 42 that thecentral portion 1211 fits in therecess 44 and theperipheral flange portion 1213 will be spaced above and outward of therecess 44 and also supported on themidsole 14. As shown inFIG. 43 , themidsole 14 underlies thebottom surface 1217 of thecentral portion 1211 of the unitaryfoam cushioning member 1236 with thebottom sheet 30 therebetween. Themidsole 14 interfaces with and underlies the casing 24 below thebottom surface 1217 of thecentral portion 1211 of the unitaryfoam cushioning member 1236. -
FIG. 43 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 1310 including thestrobel 1312 ofFIG. 40 . The article offootwear 1310 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 1312 instead ofstrobel 12. Theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article offootwear 1310 is characterized by the absence of an insole. Thestrobel 1312 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a lower extent of thecushioning member 1236 is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. Thecushioning member 1236 is disposed entirely inward of theflange 24A andstitching 52 secures theperipheral flange 24A to thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16, with the upper andlower sheets peripheral flange 24A. The upper 16 and thestrobel 1312 define the foot-receivingvoid 17 of the article offootwear 1310, with theexterior surface 18 of the casing 24 being a foot contact surface of thestrobel 1312. -
FIG. 44 is a cross-sectional illustration of another example of astrobel 1412 including acasing 1424 and a cushioning member 1436. Thestrobel 1412 is configured similar to thestrobel 1212 with the cushioning member 1436 including a central portion 1411 and a peripheral flange portion 1413 surrounding and extending outward from the central portion 1411. The cushioning member 1436 may be a unitary foam cushioning member, with the central portion 1411 thicker than the peripheral flange portion 1413 and with the peripheral flange portion 1413 vertically offset such that it is nearer to atop surface 1415 of the central portion 1411 than to abottom surface 1417 of thecentral portion 1211. The cushioning member 1436 may be referred to as T-shaped in cross section. - The
strobel 1412 includes acasing 1424 with atop sheet 28 as described, and with abottom sheet 1430 that includes acentral aperture 1431, best shown inFIG. 46 . In the assembledstrobel 1412, theperipheral flange 24A is entirely outward of the peripheral flange portion 1413, with the series ofstitches 40 securing thetop sheet 28 to thebottom sheet 1430. The central portion 1411 of the foam cushioning member 1436 extends through thecentral aperture 1431 and theinner surface 34 of thebottom sheet 1430 is adhered or thermally bonded to thebottom surface 1435 of the peripheral flange portion 1413 and to an upper extent (e.g., partway down) an outer wall 1441 (e.g., a side wall) of the central portion 1411. As shown inFIG. 46 , thebottom sheet 1430 may haveslits 1443 that enable it to conform to both thebottom surface 1435 and theouter wall 1441. Sixslits 1443 are shown (only two are labelled), but there may be fewer than or more than six. Thebottom sheet 1430 only extends partway down theouter wall 1441 when thecasing 1424 is secured to the cushioning member 1436. The lower extent of theouter wall 1441 and abottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 are thus not covered by thebottom sheet 1430, as shown inFIG. 44 . Alternatively, thebottom sheet 1430 could be sized to extend down and cover the entire surface of theouter wall 1441. -
FIG. 45 shows amidsole 1416 including afoam carrier component 1445 to which thestrobel 1412 is secured in the article offootwear 1410 ofFIG. 47 . Thestrobel 1412 is also secured at theperipheral flange 24A to thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16. Themidsole 1416 is configured as and includes thefoam carrier component 1445, which may be a one-piece component. As shown inFIGS. 45 and 47 , thefoam carrier component 1445 has acentral aperture 1447 configured as a through hole to receive the central portion 1411 of the cushioning member 1436 so that it fits to thestrobel 1412 and is disposed below thebottom surface 1435 of the peripheral flange portion 1413 and is disposed outward of theouter wall 1441 of the central portion 1411. Thecentral aperture 1447 may also be referred to as a recess in thefoam carrier component 1445 of themidsole 1416. Thebottom sheet 1430 is disposed between the peripheral flange portion 1413 and thefoam carrier component 1445, and between an upper extent of theouter wall 1441 and thefoam carrier component 1445. A lower extent of thefoam carrier component 1445 is directly secured to theouter wall 1441 with adhesive and/or by thermal bonding (e.g., fusing). - The
foam carrier component 1445 does not extend below thebottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411. The central portion 1411 is configured to be the full height of thefoam carrier component 1445 where it abuts theouter wall 1441. The central portion 1411, for example, has a height greater than the height of thecentral portion 1211 ofFIG. 43 , for example, which has themidsole 14 underlying it. With thebottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 not covered by thebottom sheet 1430, it is exposed so that theoutsole 22 can be secured directly to thebottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 and to thebottom surface 1449 of thefoam carrier component 1445. Theoutsole 22 may be at least partially transparent below thebottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 to expose the central portion 1411 to view through theoutsole 22. - Accordingly, manufacturing the article of
footwear 1410 is as described with respect to the article offootwear 10, and further includes extending the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 through thecentral aperture 1431, securing the midsole 1416 (e.g., the foam carrier component 1445) to theouter wall 1441 of the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 with themidsole 1416 disposed below thebottom surface 1435 of the peripheral flange portion 1413 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436 and the central portion 1411 in thecentral aperture 1447. Themidsole 1416 interfaces with and underlies thebottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436. The method further comprises securing theoutsole 22 to thebottom surface 1449 of themidsole 1416 and to abottom surface 1417 of the central portion 1411 of the unitary foam cushioning member 1436. -
FIG. 48 is another example of astrobel 1512. Thestrobel 1512 includes a casing 1524 that includes thetop sheet 28, thebottom sheet 30, and an intermediate sheet 29 disposed between thetop sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30 at theperipheral flange 24A and extending across thecavity 26 defined between theinner surface 32 of thetop sheet 28 and theinner surface 34 of thebottom sheet 30. Thebottom sheet 30 has aperiphery 30A secured to theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 and to theperiphery 29A of the intermediate sheet 29 by the first series of stitches 40 (e.g., by sewing) and/or by thermal bonding, welding, adhering, or compression molding. Theperipheries peripheral flange 24A Like thetop sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30, the intermediate sheet 29 may include a polymeric material and/or a textile material. - The
strobel 1512 includes afirst cushioning member 1536A disposed between thetop sheet 28 and the intermediate sheet 29, and asecond cushioning member 1536B disposed between the intermediate sheet 29 and thebottom sheet 30. Thefirst cushioning member 1536A is wider than thesecond cushioning member 1536B such that aperipheral portion 1513 of thefirst cushioning member 1536A is outward of anouter perimeter 1541 of thesecond cushioning member 1536B and inward of theperipheral flange 24A. Similar tocushioning members - The
first cushioning member 1536A and thesecond cushioning member 1536B may differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density. Alternatively, thecushioning members - Forming the
strobel 1512 includes arranging thefirst cushioning member 1536A and thesecond cushioning member 1536B so that thefirst cushioning member 1536A is disposed between thefoot contact surface 18 of thestrobel 1512 and thesecond cushioning member 1536B. Accordingly, forming thestrobel 1512 includes interfitting thefirst cushioning member 1536A with thesecond cushioning member 1536B in thecavity 26 so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing 1524 (e.g., theinner surface 32 of the top sheet 28) interfaces with thefirst cushioning member 1536A and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing 1524 (e.g., theinner surface 34 of the bottom sheet 30) interfaces with thesecond cushioning member 1536B. - Forming the
strobel 1512 may include stacking thesecond cushioning member 1536B on thebottom sheet 30, stacking the intermediate sheet 29 on thesecond cushioning member 1536B, stacking thefirst cushioning member 1536A on the intermediate sheet 29, and then stacking thetop sheet 28 on thefirst cushioning member 1536A before stitching theperipheral flange 24A. Alternatively, the assembly can be done in the reverse order, from thetop sheet 28 to thebottom sheet 30, with the components inverted relative to their orientation onFIG. 48 for purposes of assembly. As assembled, the intermediate sheet 29 is disposed between thetop sheet 28 and thebottom sheet 30, thefirst cushioning member 1536A is disposed between thetop sheet 28 and the intermediate sheet 29, and thesecond cushioning member 1536B is disposed between the intermediate sheet 29 and thebottom sheet 30, with theperiphery 30A of thebottom sheet 30, theperiphery 29A of the intermediate sheet 29, and theperiphery 28A of thetop sheet 28 secured to one another to define theperipheral flange 24A, with thefirst cushioning member 1536A and thesecond cushioning member 1536B incavity 26, theperipheral portion 1513 of thefirst cushioning member 1536A outward of theperimeter 1541 of thesecond cushioning member 1536B and inward of theperipheral flange 24A, and with the intermediate sheet 29 extending across thecavity 26. -
FIG. 49 is a cross-sectional illustration of an article offootwear 1510 including thestrobel 1512 ofFIG. 48 . The article offootwear 1510 is manufactured in the same manner as described with respect to the article offootwear 10 ofFIG. 4 , except usingstrobel 1512 instead ofstrobel 12. Theexterior surface 18 of thetop sheet 28 is the foot-contact surface within the void 17 as the article offootwear 1510 is characterized by the absence of an insole. Thestrobel 1512 rests on theupper surface 42 of themidsole 14 in therecess 44 such that at least a lower extent of thesecond cushioning member 1536B is disposed in therecess 44 and below theperipheral flange 24A. Thecushioning members peripheral flange 24A andstitching 52 secures theperipheral flange 24A to thelower perimeter 16A of the upper 16, with the upper andlower sheets peripheral flange 24A. The upper 16 and thestrobel 1512 define the foot-receivingvoid 17 of the article offootwear 1310, with theexterior surface 18 of the casing 1524 being a foot contact surface of thestrobel 1512. -
FIG. 50 is a flow diagram of amethod 1600 of manufacturing any of the articles of footwear discussed herein. Themethod 1600 includesstep 1602, providing a strobel having a casing that has a peripheral flange and defines a cavity with at least one cushioning member in the cavity.Step 1602 applies to any of the strobels disclosed herein. For example,strobel 12 may be provided having the casing 24 with aperipheral flange 24A enclosing acavity 26 with at least one cushioningmember 36 in the cavity. In some examples, thestrobel 12 that is provided may be formed by a separate entity than the entity carrying out themethod 1600. In another example, the entity providing the strobel instep 1602 may be the same entity that forms the strobel, in which case forming the strobel may include one or more sub-steps of providing the strobel instep 1602. The different specific steps of forming each strobel have been discussed herein with respect to each strobel as described herein. - After the strobel is provided, it may be aligned with the upper 16 in
step 1604 in preparation for securing the strobel to the upper 16. For example, inFIG. 9 , thestrobel 12 is being aligned with the upper 16 via locatingfeatures lower perimeter 16A of the upper 16 instep 1606, as described with respect toperipheral flange 24A ofstrobel 12 being secured to thelower perimeter 16A by thestitching 52 inFIG. 10 . - Next, in
step 1608, the strobel with the upper secured thereto may be placed on a last, as shown, for example, with respect to thestrobel 12 and upper 16 ofFIG. 11 being placed on the last 54. Instep 1610, the midsole may be secured to the upper and/or the strobel while the upper and strobel are on the last, as shown inFIG. 13 , for example, with respect to themidsole 14 being adhered to the upper 16 (at thelower perimeter 16A) and to thestrobel 12. Instep 1612, theoutsole 22 may then be secured to the midsole, as shown, for example with respect tooutsole 22 secured to midsole 14 inFIG. 15 . In all of the example strobels and articles of footwear discussed herein, the one or more cushioning members are disposed within the casing and at least a portion of the one or more cushioning members are nested in arecess 44 of the midsole so as to be disposed at least partially below theperipheral flange 24A. - The following are example configurations of strobels and articles of footwear, and example methods of manufacturing as disclosed herein.
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Clause 1. A strobel for an article of footwear having an upper with a lower perimeter, the strobel comprising: a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity; and at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity; wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel and the peripheral flange is configured for connection to the lower perimeter of the upper. -
Clause 2. The strobel ofclause 1, wherein the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material. -
Clause 3. The strobel ofclause 2, wherein the top sheet is thermally bonded, welded, adhered, compression molded, or sewn to the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange. -
Clause 4. The strobel of any of clauses 2-3, wherein the top sheet comprises a textile material and the bottom sheet comprises a thermoplastic polyurethane material, or the top sheet comprises a thermoplastic polyurethane material and the bottom sheet comprises a textile material, or both the top sheet and the bottom sheet comprise a textile material, or both the top sheet and the bottom sheet comprise a thermoplastic polyurethane material. -
Clause 5. The strobel of any of clauses 1-4, wherein: the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and at least a portion of the first cushioning member overlies the second cushioning member and is disposed between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the second cushioning member. - Clause 6. The strobel of
clause 5, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density. - Clause 7. The strobel of any of clauses 1-4, wherein: the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and the first cushioning member interfits with the second cushioning member in the cavity so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing interfaces with the first cushioning member and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing interfaces with the second cushioning member.
- Clause 8. The strobel of clause 7, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density.
- Clause 9. The strobel of clause 8, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member interfit with one another such that both interface with a top inner surface of the casing.
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Clause 10. The strobel of clause 9, wherein the first cushioning member partially overlies the second cushioning member in the cavity. - Clause 11. The strobel of any of clauses 1-4, wherein: at least a portion of a top surface of the at least one cushioning member interfacing with a top inner surface of the casing is convex; or at least a portion of the top surface of the at least one cushioning member interfacing with the top inner surface of the casing is concave.
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Clause 12. The strobel ofclause 1, wherein: the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; the first cushioning member is a foam cushioning member; and the second cushioning member is a fluid-filled chamber. -
Clause 13. The strobel ofclause 12, wherein at least a portion of the first cushioning member overlies the second cushioning member and is disposed between the foot contact surface of the casing and the second cushioning member. -
Clause 14. The strobel ofclause 13, further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity between the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member. -
Clause 15. The strobel of any of clauses 1-4, further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity and overlying the at least one cushioning member so that the plate is between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the at least one cushioning member, and the at least one cushioning member is between the plate and a bottom exterior surface of the casing. -
Clause 16. The strobel of any of clauses 1-4, wherein: the at least one cushioning member is a unitary foam cushioning member configured with a central portion and a peripheral flange portion surrounding and extending outward from the central portion; the central portion is thicker than the peripheral flange portion; and the peripheral flange portion is nearer to a top surface of the central portion than to a bottom surface of the central portion. -
Clause 17. The strobel ofclause 16, further comprising: stitching extending through the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member and the peripheral flange of the casing, the stitching joining the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member to the peripheral flange of the casing. -
Clause 18. The strobel of any of clauses 16-17, wherein: the casing has a central aperture extending through a bottom of the casing; and the central portion of the foam cushioning member extends through the central aperture. -
Clause 19. The strobel ofclause 1, wherein the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material; and the strobel further comprising: an intermediate sheet disposed between the top sheet and the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange and extending across the cavity; wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member disposed between the top sheet and the intermediate sheet, and a second cushioning member disposed between the intermediate sheet and the bottom sheet; and wherein the first cushioning member is wider than the second cushioning member such that a peripheral portion of the first cushioning member is outward of a perimeter of the second cushioning member and inward of the peripheral flange. -
Clause 20. An article of footwear particularly according to any of the preceding clauses, the article of footwear comprising: an upper; a strobel including: a casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity; and at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity; wherein a lower perimeter of the upper is secured to the peripheral flange of the strobel, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear; and wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear characterized by the absence of an insole. -
Clause 21. The article of footwear ofclause 20, further comprising: a midsole; wherein: the strobel at least partially overlies the midsole; an upper surface of the midsole defines a recess; and the strobel rests on the upper surface of the midsole in the recess such that at least a portion of the at least one cushioning member is disposed in the recess and below the peripheral flange. -
Clause 22. The article of footwear of any of clauses 20-21, wherein the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material. -
Clause 23. The article of footwear ofclause 22, wherein the top sheet is thermally bonded, welded, adhered, compression molded, or sewn to the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange. - Clause 24. The article of footwear of any of clauses 22-23, wherein the top sheet includes a textile material and the bottom sheet includes a thermoplastic polyurethane material, or the top sheet includes a thermoplastic polyurethane material and the bottom sheet includes a textile material, or both the top sheet and the bottom sheet include a textile material, or both the top sheet and the bottom sheet include a thermoplastic polyurethane material.
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Clause 25. The article of footwear ofclause 20, wherein: the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and at least a portion of the first cushioning member overlies the second cushioning member and is disposed between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the second cushioning member. -
Clause 26. The article of footwear ofclause 25, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density. -
Clause 27. The article of footwear ofclause 20, wherein: the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; and the first cushioning member interfits with the second cushioning member in the cavity so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing interfaces with the first cushioning member and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing interfaces with the second cushioning member. -
Clause 28. The article of footwear ofclause 27, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density. - Clause 29. The article of footwear of any of clauses 27-28, wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member interfit with one another such that both interface with a top inner surface of the casing.
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Clause 30. The article of footwear of clause 29, wherein the first cushioning member partially overlies the second cushioning member in the cavity. - Clause 31. The article of footwear of
clause 20, wherein: at least a portion of a top surface of the at least one cushioning member interfacing with a top inner surface of the casing is convex; or at least a portion of the top the surface of the at least one cushioning member interfacing with the top inner surface of the casing is concave. -
Clause 32. The article of footwear ofclause 20, wherein: the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; the first cushioning member is a foam cushioning member; and the second cushioning member is a fluid-filled chamber. -
Clause 33. The article of footwear ofclause 32, wherein: at least a portion of the first cushioning member overlies the second cushioning member and is disposed between the foot contact surface of the casing and the second cushioning member. -
Clause 34. The article of footwear ofclause 33, further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity between the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member. -
Clause 35. The article of footwear ofclause 20, further comprising: a plate disposed within the cavity and overlying the at least one cushioning member so that the plate is between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the at least one cushioning member, and the at least one cushioning member is between the plate and a bottom exterior surface of the casing. -
Clause 36. The article of footwear ofclause 20, wherein: the at least one cushioning member is a unitary foam cushioning member configured with a central portion and a peripheral flange portion surrounding and extending outward from the central portion; and the central portion is thicker than the peripheral flange portion; and the peripheral flange portion is nearer to a top surface of the central portion than to a bottom surface of the central portion. -
Clause 37. The article of footwear ofclause 36, further comprising: a first line of stitching extending through the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member and the peripheral flange of the casing, the stitching joining the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member to the peripheral flange of the casing; and a second line of stitching extending through the peripheral flange of the casing and the lower perimeter of the upper to secure the strobel to the upper, the second line of stitching disposed between a peripheral edge of the peripheral flange and the first line of stitching such that the second line of stitching is outward of the first line of stitching and not extending through the unitary foam cushioning member. - Clause 38. The article of footwear of
clause 36, further comprising: a midsole, wherein: the strobel at least partially overlies the midsole; the casing has a central aperture extending through a bottom of the casing; the central portion of the foam cushioning member extends through the central aperture; and the midsole includes a foam carrier component disposed below a bottom surface of the peripheral flange portion of the foam cushioning member and disposed outward of an outer wall of the central portion of the foam cushioning member. - Clause 39. The article of footwear of clause 38, further comprising an outsole secured to a bottom surface of the foam carrier component and to a bottom surface of the central portion of the foam cushioning member.
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Clause 40. The article of footwear of clause 39, wherein the outsole is at least partially transparent below the bottom surface of the central portion of the foam cushioning member. - Clause 41. The article of footwear of
clause 36, wherein: the midsole includes a foam carrier component disposed below a bottom surface of the peripheral flange portion of the foam cushioning member and disposed outward of an outer wall of the central portion of the foam cushioning member; and the foam carrier component underlies a bottom surface of the central portion of the foam cushioning member. -
Clause 42. The article of footwear of clause 41, further comprising an outsole secured to a bottom surface of the foam carrier component. - Clause 43. The article of footwear of
clause 20, wherein the casing includes: a top sheet having a periphery; and a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet; wherein each of the top sheet and the bottom sheet includes a polymeric material or a textile material; and the article of footwear further comprising: an intermediate sheet disposed between the top sheet and the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange and extending across the cavity; wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member disposed between the top sheet and the intermediate sheet, and a second cushioning member disposed between the intermediate sheet and the bottom sheet; and wherein the first cushioning member is wider than the second cushioning member such that a peripheral portion of the first cushioning member is outward of a perimeter of the second cushioning member and inward of the peripheral flange. -
Clause 44. A method of manufacturing an article of footwear particularly according to any of the preceding clauses, the method comprising: securing a peripheral flange of a casing of a strobel to a lower perimeter of an upper, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear, the strobel having at least one cushioning member, the casing defining a cavity, and the at least one cushioning member disposed in the cavity; and wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear characterized by the absence of an insole. - Clause 45. The method of
clause 44, further comprising: lasting the upper after securing the peripheral flange of the casing to the lower perimeter of the upper. - Clause 46. The method of
clause 44, further comprising: securing an upper surface of a midsole to at least one of the upper or a lower exterior surface of the strobel such that at least a portion of the at least one cushioning member of the strobel rests in a recess in the upper surface of the midsole below the peripheral flange. - Clause 47. The method of any of clauses 44-46, wherein securing the peripheral flange to the lower perimeter of the upper is by stitching the peripheral flange to the lower perimeter of the upper.
- Clause 48. The method of any of clauses 44-47, wherein the casing includes a top sheet having a periphery and a bottom sheet having a periphery; and the method further comprising: forming the strobel by: disposing the at least one cushioning member between the top sheet and the bottom sheet; and securing the periphery of the bottom sheet to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet with the at least one cushioning member in the cavity.
- Clause 49. The method of clause 48, wherein securing the periphery of the bottom sheet to the periphery of the top sheet to define the peripheral flange is by at least one of thermal bonding, welding, adhering, compression molding, or sewing.
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Clause 50. The method of clause 48, wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density; and forming the strobel further includes: arranging the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member so that at least a portion of the first cushioning member is disposed between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the second cushioning member. - Clause 51. The method of clause 48, wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density; and forming the strobel further includes: interfitting the first cushioning member with the second cushioning member in the cavity so that a first portion of an inner surface of the casing interfaces with the first cushioning member and a second portion of the inner surface of the casing interfaces with the second cushioning member.
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Clause 52. The method of clause 48, wherein forming the strobel further includes: disposing a plate within the cavity so that the plate is between the foot contact surface of the strobel and the at least one cushioning member, and the at least one cushioning member is between the plate and a bottom exterior surface of the casing - Clause 53. The method of clause 48, wherein: the at least one cushioning member is a unitary foam cushioning member configured with a central portion and a peripheral flange portion surrounding and extending outward from the central portion; the central portion is thicker than the peripheral flange portion; and forming the strobel further includes: stitching the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member to the top sheet and the bottom sheet at the peripheral flange of the casing with the peripheral flange portion nearer to a top surface of the central portion than to a bottom surface of the central portion, the stitching joining the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member to the peripheral flange of the casing.
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Clause 54. The method of clause 53, wherein the casing has a central aperture extending through a bottom sheet; and forming the strobel further includes: extending the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member through the central aperture. - Clause 55. The method of
clause 54, further comprising: securing a midsole to an outer wall of the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member with the midsole disposed below a bottom surface of the peripheral flange portion of the unitary foam cushioning member. -
Clause 56. The method of clause 55, wherein the midsole interfaces with and underlies the casing below a bottom surface of the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member. - Clause 57. The method of clause 55, further comprising: securing an outsole to a bottom surface of the midsole.
- Clause 58. The method of clause 55, further comprising: securing an outsole to a bottom surface of the midsole and to a bottom surface of the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member.
- Clause 59. The method of clause 58, wherein the outsole is at least partially transparent below the bottom surface of the central portion of the unitary foam cushioning member.
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Clause 60. The method ofclause 44, wherein the casing includes a top sheet having a periphery and a bottom sheet having a periphery; wherein the at least one cushioning member includes a first cushioning member and a second cushioning member; wherein the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member differ in at least one of material, hardness, energy return, or density; and forming the strobel further includes: disposing an intermediate sheet between the top sheet and the bottom sheet; disposing the first cushioning member between the top sheet and the intermediate sheet; disposing the second cushioning member between the intermediate sheet and the bottom sheet; and securing the periphery of the bottom sheet, a periphery of the intermediate sheet, and the periphery of the top sheet to one another to define the peripheral flange, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet and an inner surface of the bottom sheet with the first cushioning member and the second cushioning member in cavity; wherein the first cushioning member is wider than the second cushioning member such that a peripheral portion of the first cushioning member is outward of a perimeter of the second cushioning member and inward of the peripheral flange; and wherein the intermediate sheet extends across the cavity. - To assist and clarify the description of various embodiments, various terms are defined herein. Unless otherwise indicated, the following definitions apply throughout this specification (including the claims). Additionally, all references referred to are incorporated herein in their entirety.
- An “article of footwear”, a “footwear article of manufacture”, and “footwear” may be considered to be both a machine and a manufacture. Assembled, ready to wear footwear articles (e.g., shoes, sandals, boots, etc.), as well as discrete components of footwear articles (such as a midsole, an outsole, an upper component, etc.) prior to final assembly into ready to wear footwear articles, are considered and alternatively referred to herein in either the singular or plural as “article(s) of footwear”.
- “A”, “an”, “the”, “at least one”, and “one or more” are used interchangeably to indicate that at least one of the items is present. A plurality of such items may be present unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. All numerical values of parameters (e.g., of quantities or conditions) in this specification, unless otherwise indicated expressly or clearly in view of the context, including the appended claims, are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term “about” whether or not “about” actually appears before the numerical value. “About” indicates that the stated numerical value allows some slight imprecision (with some approach to exactness in the value; approximately or reasonably close to the value; nearly). If the imprecision provided by “about” is not otherwise understood in the art with this ordinary meaning, then “about” as used herein indicates at least variations that may arise from ordinary methods of measuring and using such parameters. In addition, a disclosure of a range is to be understood as specifically disclosing all values and further divided ranges within the range.
- The terms “comprising”, “including”, and “having” are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, or components. Orders of steps, processes, and operations may be altered when possible, and additional or alternative steps may be employed. As used in this specification, the term “or” includes any one and all combinations of the associated listed items. The term “any of” is understood to include any possible combination of referenced items, including “any one of” the referenced items. The term “any of” is understood to include any possible combination of referenced claims of the appended claims, including “any one of” the referenced claims.
- For consistency and convenience, directional adjectives may be employed throughout this detailed description corresponding to the illustrated embodiments. Those having ordinary skill in the art will recognize that terms such as “above”, “below”, “upward”, “downward”, “top”, “bottom”, etc., may be used descriptively relative to the figures, without representing limitations on the scope of the invention, as defined by the claims.
- The term “longitudinal” refers to a direction extending along a length of a component. For example, a longitudinal direction of a shoe extends between a forefoot region and a heel region of the shoe. The term “forward” or “anterior” is used to refer to the general direction from a heel region toward a forefoot region, and the term “rearward” or “posterior” is used to refer to the opposite direction, i.e., the direction from the forefoot region toward the heel region. In some cases, a component may be identified with a longitudinal axis as well as a forward and rearward longitudinal direction along that axis. The longitudinal direction or axis may also be referred to as an anterior-posterior direction or axis.
- The term “transverse” refers to a direction extending along a width of a component. For example, a transverse direction of a shoe extends between a lateral side and a medial side of the shoe. The transverse direction or axis may also be referred to as a lateral direction or axis or a mediolateral direction or axis.
- The term “vertical” refers to a direction generally perpendicular to both the lateral and longitudinal directions. For example, in cases where a sole is planted flat on a ground surface, the vertical direction may extend from the ground surface upward. It will be understood that each of these directional adjectives may be applied to individual components of a sole. The term “upward” or “upwards” refers to the vertical direction pointing towards a top of the component, which may include an instep, a fastening region and/or a throat of an upper. The term “downward” or “downwards” refers to the vertical direction pointing opposite the upwards direction, toward the bottom of a component and may generally point towards the bottom of a sole structure of an article of footwear.
- The “interior” of an article of footwear, such as a shoe, refers to portions at the space that is occupied by a wearer's foot when the shoe is worn. The “inner side” of a component refers to the side or surface of the component that is (or will be) oriented toward the interior of the component or article of footwear in an assembled article of footwear. The “outer side” or “exterior” of a component refers to the side or surface of the component that is (or will be) oriented away from the interior of the shoe in an assembled shoe. In some cases, other components may be between the inner side of a component and the interior in the assembled article of footwear. Similarly, other components may be between an outer side of a component and the space external to the assembled article of footwear. Further, the terms “inward” and “inwardly” refer to the direction toward the interior of the component or article of footwear, such as a shoe, and the terms “outward” and “outwardly” refer to the direction toward the exterior of the component or article of footwear, such as the shoe. In addition, the term “proximal” refers to a direction that is nearer a center of a footwear component, or is closer toward a foot when the foot is inserted in the article of footwear as it is worn by a user. Likewise, the term “distal” refers to a relative position that is further away from a center of the footwear component or is further from a foot when the foot is inserted in the article of footwear as it is worn by a user. Thus, the terms proximal and distal may be understood to provide generally opposing terms to describe relative spatial positions.
- While various embodiments have been described, the description is intended to be exemplary, rather than limiting and it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many more embodiments and implementations are possible that are within the scope of the embodiments. Any feature of any embodiment may be used in combination with or substituted for any other feature or element in any other embodiment unless specifically restricted. Accordingly, the embodiments are not to be restricted except in light of the attached claims and their equivalents. Also, various modifications and changes may be made within the scope of the attached claims.
- While several modes for carrying out the many aspects of the present teachings have been described in detail, those familiar with the art to which these teachings relate will recognize various alternative aspects for practicing the present teachings that are within the scope of the appended claims. It is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and exemplary of the entire range of alternative embodiments that an ordinarily skilled artisan would recognize as implied by, structurally and/or functionally equivalent to, or otherwise rendered obvious based upon the included content, and not as limited solely to those explicitly depicted and/or described embodiments.
Claims (20)
1. An article of footwear comprising:
an upper;
a strobel including a casing, the casing having a peripheral flange and defining a cavity; and
a cushioning member disposed in the cavity;
wherein the casing includes:
a top sheet having a periphery; and
a bottom sheet having a periphery secured to the periphery of the top sheet of the casing to define the peripheral flange of the casing, and the cavity defined between an inner surface of the top sheet of the casing and an inner surface of the bottom sheet of the casing;
wherein the periphery of the bottom sheet of the casing is secured to the periphery of the top sheet of the casing with stitching and without thermal bonds, welds, or adhesive to define the peripheral flange of the casing;
wherein the cushioning member is a fluid-filled chamber including a top sheet bonded to a bottom sheet at a cushioning member peripheral flange, the cushioning member peripheral flange entirely inward of the peripheral flange of the casing in the cavity;
wherein a lower perimeter of the upper is secured to the peripheral flange of the strobel, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear; and
wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear characterized by the absence of an insole.
2. The article of footwear of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the top sheet of the casing or the bottom sheet of the casing includes a textile material.
3. The article of footwear of claim 2 , wherein both the top sheet of the casing and the bottom sheet of the casing comprise a textile material.
4. The article of footwear of claim 1 , further comprising:
a midsole; wherein:
the strobel at least partially overlies the midsole;
an upper surface of the midsole defines a recess; and
the strobel rests on the upper surface of the midsole in the recess such that at least a portion of the cushioning member is disposed in the recess and below the peripheral flange.
5. The article of footwear of claim 1 , further comprising:
a plate disposed within the cavity and overlying the cushioning member so that the cushioning member is between the plate and a bottom exterior surface of the casing.
6. The article of footwear of claim 5 , wherein the plate is less compressible than the cushioning member.
7. The article of footwear of claim 1 , wherein the cushioning member and is configured to provide resilient compressibility with energy return.
8. The article of footwear of claim 7 , wherein the fluid-filled chamber is pressurized.
9. The article of footwear of claim 1 , further comprising additional stitching extending through the peripheral flange and a lower perimeter of the upper to secure the strobel to the upper.
10. The article of footwear of claim 1 , wherein the cushioning member is the only cushioning member disposed within the cavity of the casing.
11. A method of manufacturing an article of footwear, the method comprising:
forming a strobel by stitching a periphery of a top sheet of a casing of the strobel to a periphery of a bottom sheet of the casing of the strobel to define a peripheral flange of the casing; wherein the top sheet of the casing is secured to the bottom sheet of the casing at the peripheral flange by the stitching and without thermal bonds, welds, or adhesive; and
securing the peripheral flange of the casing of the strobel to a lower perimeter of an upper, the upper and the strobel defining a foot-receiving void of the article of footwear, the strobel having a cushioning member, the casing defining a cavity, and the cushioning member disposed in the cavity;
wherein the cushioning member is a fluid-filled chamber including a top sheet bonded to a bottom sheet at a cushioning member peripheral flange, the cushioning member peripheral flange entirely inward of the peripheral flange of the casing in the cavity; and
wherein an exterior surface of the casing facing away from the cavity is a foot contact surface of the strobel within the foot-receiving void, the article of footwear characterized by the absence of an insole.
12. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , further comprising:
lasting the upper after securing the peripheral flange of the casing of the strobel to the lower perimeter of the upper.
13. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , further comprising:
securing an upper surface of a midsole to at least one of the upper or a lower exterior surface of the strobel such that at least a portion of the cushioning member of the strobel rests in a recess in the upper surface of the midsole below the peripheral flange.
14. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , wherein securing the peripheral flange of the casing of the strobel to the lower perimeter of the upper is by stitching the peripheral flange to the lower perimeter of the upper.
15. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , wherein forming the strobel further includes:
disposing a plate within the cavity so that the plate overlies the cushioning member and the cushioning member is between the plate and a bottom exterior surface of the casing.
16. The method of manufacturing of claim 15 , wherein the plate is less compressible than the cushioning member.
17. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , further comprising:
inflating the fluid-filled chamber to pressurize the cushioning member.
18. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , wherein at least one of the top sheet of the casing or the bottom sheet of the casing includes a textile material.
19. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , wherein both the top sheet of the casing and the bottom sheet of the casing comprise a textile material.
20. The method of manufacturing of claim 11 , wherein the cushioning member is the only cushioning member disposed within the cavity of the casing.
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WO2022220960A1 (en) | 2021-04-12 | 2022-10-20 | Nike Innovate C.V. | Articulating footwear strobel with bladder and tensile component |
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-
2021
- 2021-03-05 EP EP21714747.9A patent/EP4125483A1/en active Pending
- 2021-03-05 WO PCT/US2021/021098 patent/WO2021194727A1/en unknown
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- 2021-03-05 CN CN202180018736.XA patent/CN115279222B/en active Active
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2023
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WO2021194727A1 (en) | 2021-09-30 |
US20210298419A1 (en) | 2021-09-30 |
CN115279222A (en) | 2022-11-01 |
EP4125483A1 (en) | 2023-02-08 |
CN115279222B (en) | 2024-05-31 |
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